Changes in the height of the active Karymskii Volcano, Kamchatka during the period 1971–2007

Systematic measurements of the height of the summit crater rim on the active Karymskii Volcano showed that the variation of that parameter has been greater during its last eruption, lasting, with short intermissions, from January 1, 1996 until now (October 2007) compared with the earlier eruptions. The periodic increases in the height of Karymskii Volcano were due to explosion discharges of unconsolidated pyroclastic material, with most of this falling on the volcano’s cone. The increased seismicity of Karymskii Volcano intensified the slope movement processes, resulting in a comparatively flat area forming periodically on the crater rim; during separate, not very long, periods the height of the volcanic cone was increasing in discrete steps and at a greater rate. The periodic decrease in the height of Karymskii Volcano is due to compaction of pyroclastic material and, to a much greater extent, after violent explosions which expand the crater by removing its nearsummit circumference. The other contributing factor consists in sagging of the magma column due to partial emptying of the peripheral magma chamber, which makes the internal crater slope steeper, hence causes cone collapse and the cone lower. These occurrences are generally similar to the processes of crater and caldera generation described by previous investigators for other volcanoes of the world.     

Summit eruptions of Klyuchevskoi Volcano,Kamchatka in the early 21st century, 2003–2013

This paper is concerned with eruptions, seismicity, and deformation on Klyuchevskoi Volcano during the summit eruptions of 2012–2013, with the condition of the central crater during the eruptions, and with the effect that is exerted by the height of the lava in the crater on the start of the eruptions. The recurrence of eruptions in the North Volcanic Cluster (NVC), Kamchatka showed that all the four volcanoes in the cluster (Klyuchevskoi, Tolbachik, Shiveluch, and Bezymyannyi) become active during definite phases that were identified in the 18.6-year lunar cycle. This relationship of the NVC eruptions to the active phases in the 18.6-year lunar cycle, as well as the relationship to the 11-year solar activity, showed that eruptions can be predicted, yielding long-term estimates of activity for the NVC volcanoes. The short-term prediction of volcanic eruptions requires knowledge of seismicity and deformation that occur during the precursory period and during the occurrence of eruptions. Seismic activity during the summit eruptions of 2003–2013 took place in the depth range 20–25 km during repose periods of the volcano and at depths of 0–5 km in the volcanic edifice during the eruption. One notes an almost complete absence of any earthquakes at great depths during the summit eruptions. Volcanic tremor (VT) was recorded from the time that the eruptions began and continued to occur until the end. Geodetic measurements showed that the center of the magma pressure beneath the volcano during the parasitic and summit eruptions of 1979–1989 moved in the 4–17 km depth range, while during the summit eruptions of 2003–2013 the center moved in the 15–20 km range. These changes in the depth of the center of magma pressure may have been related to evacuation from shallow magma chambers.     

Satellite and Ground-Based Observations of Explosive Eruptions on Zhupanovsky Volcano,Kamchatka, Russia in 2013 and in 2014–2016

The active andesitic Zhupanovsky Volcano consists of four coalesced stratovolcano cones. The historical explosive eruptions of 1940, 1957, and 2014?2016 discharged material from the Priemysh Cone. The recent Zhupanovsky eruptions were studied using satellite data supplied by the Monitoring of Active Volcanoes in Kamchatka and on the Kuril Islands information system (VolSatView), as well as based on video and visual observations of the volcano. The first eruption started on October 22 and lasted until October 24, 2013. Fumaroles situated on the Priemysh western slope were the centers that discharged gas plumes charged with some amount of ash. The next eruption started on June 6, 2014 and lasted until November 20, 2016. The explosive activity of Zhupanovsky was not uniform in 2014–2016, with the ash plumes being detected on satellite images for an approximate total duration of 112 days spread over 17 months. The most vigorous activity was observed between June and October, and in November 2014, with a bright thermal anomaly being nearly constantly seen on satellite images around Priemysh between January and April 2015 and in January–February 2016. The 2014–2016 eruption culminated in explosive events and collapse of parts of the Priemysh Cone on July 12 and 14, November 30, 2015, and on February 12 and November 20, 2016.     

Water contaminated by fresh tephra as a natural hazard factor: The 2008–2009 eruption of Koryakskii Volcano,Kamchatka

This study is the first to show, using data from the eruption of Koryakskii Volcano, Kamchatka that began in December 2008 and continued through 2009 that the water in permanent and temporary streams that start on the slopes of the volcanic cone and in temporary lakes when contaminated with fresh tephra is a specific hazard factor related to long-continued hydrothermal-phreatic eruptions on that volcano. This water is characterized by increased acidity (pH 4.1–4.35) and large amounts (up to 50–100 cm³/liter) of solid suspension and is unfit for drinking and irrigation. When combined with tephra, it probably produced mass destruction of a number of animals who lived on the slopes and at the base of the volcano. The water contaminated with tephra is an important component of the atmospheric mud flows occurring on Koryakskii Volcano; for several future years it will be a potential source for enhancing the acidity of ground water in the volcanic edifice.     

Hydrothermal hexahydrite spherules erupted during the 2008–2010 summit eruption of Kīlauea Volcano,Hawai`i

Small (1–3 mm), hollow spherules of hexahydrite have been collected falling out of the magmatic gas plume downwind of Kīlauea’s summit vent. The spherules were observed on eight separate occasions during 2009–2010 when a lake of actively spattering lava was present ~150–200 m below the rim of the vent. The shells of the spherules have a fine bubbly foam structure less than 0.1 mm thick, composed almost entirely of hexahydrite [MgSO₄·6H₂O] Small microspherules of lava (<5 μm across) along with mineral and rock fragments from the magmatic plume adhered to the outside of the hexahydrite spherules. Phase relationships and the particulate matter in the magmatic plume indicate that the spherules originated as a bubbly solution injected into and mixed with the magmatic plume. The most likely mechanism for production of hexahydrite spherules is boiling of MgSO₄-saturated meteoric water in the walls of the conduit above the surface of the lava lake. Solfataric sulfates may thus be recycled and reinjected into the plume, creating particulates of sulfate minerals that can be distributed far from their original source.     

The classification of potassium basaltic trachyandesites that were discharged by the 2012–2013 parasitic eruption on Ploskii Tolbachik Volcano,Kamchatka using geochemical criteria

This study is concerned with the petrographic, mineralogic, and geochemical features in the K-high basaltic trachyandesites that were discharged by the 2012–2013 parasitic eruption on Ploskii Tolbachik Volcano. These K-high basaltic trachyandesites exhibit some obvious characteristics that testify to their suprasubduction origin. They are deeply differentiated rocks with strongly fractionated plagioclase. A study of the Sr, Nd, and Pb radiogenic isotope ratios in the K-high basaltic trachyandesites provided evidence of their mantle origin and of the fact that the crust has exerted no influence on their compositions. We performed a comparative analysis of the ratios of the concentrations for some incoherent elements in the K-high basaltic trachyandesites, as well as in intraplate, riftogenic, and island-arc moderate potassium basalts and basaltic andesites in relation to the concentrations of these elements in the primitive mantle. The geochemical features of these K-high basaltic trachyandesites classify them as belonging to the suprasubduction subalkaline formation of the potassium series.     

The February–July 2007 eruption of the summit crater of Klyuchevskoi volcano, Kamchatka

Observations of the summit eruption of Klyuchevskoi volcano in the period from February 15, 2007 to July 9, 2007 are considered. This typical (for this volcano) summit eruption was explosive-effusive in character. The ejectamenta volume is estimated at 0.025 km³. Calculation of active phases of the volcano was carried out in accordance with V.A. Shirokov’s technique. The identified active phases agree well with the eruptive periods. The 2007 summit eruption corresponds to an active phase (May 2006 to May 2009) favorable for the volcano’s eruption. Geodetic observations carried out since 1979 along a radial profile have revealed uplifts and subsidences of the northeastern slope of the volcano. The maximum displacement of 23 cm was recorded in 2007 on the site closest to the volcano crater at a distance of 11 km from the summit crater center. In the course of two previous summit eruptions (2003–2004 and 2005) insignificant uplifts and subsidences of the slope were also noted, although the general ascent of the slope remained. This indicated possible repeated eruptions in the nearest future. Changes in the seismicity before, during and after the eruption are also discussed.     

Assessing the volumes of material discharged by Bezymyannyi Volcano during the 1955–2009 period

We present data on the volumes of material discharged during the main phases of the volcano’s recent activity from its start in October 1955 until December 2009. The amount of ash discharged onto the ground surface during the preculmination period (October 1955 to March 1956) is estimated as 400 million tons; the paroxysmal eruption of March 30, 1956 discharged more than 400 million tons, the volume of pyroclastic flows was estimated as 1416 million tons. The following estimates were obtained for the material discharged onto the ground surface for the period from 1956 to 2009. The weight of the lava cone that grew in the newly formed crater is 941 million tons, the deposits of pyroclastic flows weighed 491 million tons, and the ash weight was 117 million tons. Effusive activity was insignificant; the weight of the lava flows was ∼9.2 million tons. The amount of material erupted during the third phase is estimated as 1560 million tons. The mean annual discharge between April 1956 and December 2009 was 29 million tons. This figure is half that for the giant Klyuchevskoi volcano and six times larger than the mean discharge found for the 5000–5500 years of the existence of Bezymyannyi Volcano.     

GPS monitoring of recent crustal movements in Kamchatka and the Commander Islands during 1997–2007

This is a review of the geodetic monitoring of the horizontal component of recent crustal movements (RCMs) in Kamchatka and the Commander Islands for the period 1979–2007. Examples are provided of the RCMs recorded in Kamchatka and the Commander Islands for the period 1997–2007 by the Kamchatka regional GPS network (KAMNET) set up by workers at the Kamchatka Branch of the RAS Geophysical Service (KB GS RAS) in collaboration with the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far East Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences to study the geodynamic processes that are occurring in the Kamchatka subduction zone. An interpretation of examples of recorded RCMs is given.     

The 2010–2012 eruption of Kizimen Volcano: The greatest output (from the data of remote-sensing observations) for eruptions in Kamchatka in the early 21st century part I. The November 11, 2010 to December 11, 2011 phase

This paper presents the results from the detailed analysis of aerial photographs and space images for the Kizimen area, which characterize the geologic and geomorphologic effects of the ongoing eruption over the 2010–2011 period. It is shown that the total volume (>0.5 km³) and total mass (>10⁹ t) of the discharged (resurgent plus juvenile) material makes this eruption the most productive in Kamchatka for the first 12 years of the 21st century. The dominant component (>90%) is juvenile material with andesitic composition. The pyroclastics (tephra, deposits of the juvenile pyroclastic avalanches and incandescent debris avalanches) comprise >0.3 km³and >0.45× 10⁹ t, the lava (a very thick block lava flow 3.052 km long and 2.163 km² in area) occupies about 0.195 km³ and 0.45 × 10⁹ t. With the exception of the tephra, which fell over an area of about 100000 km², the rest of the material was accumulated on the Kizimen cone and at its base. The mean discharge rate of juvenile ejecta was about 15 m³/s (29 t/s) for 13 months (November 11, 2010 to December 11, 2011). Appreciable changes also occurred at the near-summit part of the volcano’s cone.     

Precursory seismicity of the 1994 eruption of Popocatépetl Volcano,Central Mexico

Popocatépetl Volcano is located in the central Mexican Volcanic Belt, within a densely populated region inhabited by over 20 million people. The eruptive history of this volcano indicates that it is capable of producing a wide range of eruptions, including Plinian events. After nearly 70 years of quiescence, Popocatépetl reawakened in December 21, 1994. The eruptive activity has continued up until the date of this submission and has been characterized by a succession of lava dome growth-and-destruction episodes, similar to events that have apparently been typical for Popocatépetl since the fourteenth century. In this regime, the episodes of effusive and moderately explosive activity alternate with long periods of almost total quiescence. In this paper we analyze five years of volcano-tectonic seismicity preceding the initial eruption of the current episode. The evolution of the V-T seismicity shows four distinct stages, which we interpret in terms of the internal processes which precede an eruption after a long period of quiescence. The thermal effects of a magma intrusion at depth, the fracturing related to the slow development of magma-related fluid pathways, the concentration of stress causing a protracted acceleration of this process, and a final relaxation or redistribution of the stress shortly before the initial eruption are reflected in the rates of V-T seismic energy release. A hindsight analysis of this activity shows that the acceleration of the seismicity in the third stage asymptotically forecast the time of the eruption. The total seismic energy release needed to produce an eruption after a long period of quiescence is related to the volume of rock that must be fractured so imposing a characteristic threshold limit for polygenetic volcanoes, limit that was reached by Popocatépetl before the eruption.     

The Composition of Volcanic Ash and the Dynamics of the 2013–2016 Zhupanovsky Volcano Eruption

This paper presents the results from a study of ash compositions that were erupted in 2013–2016. The juvenile component has been identified in the ejecta using data on the morphology and textural features of ash particles and the composition of volcanic glasses. The data set suggests that the activity of the volcano was phreatomagmatic.     

Dynamics, stratigraphy and proximal dispersal of supraglacial tephra during the ice-confined 2004 eruption at Grímsv?tn Volcano, Iceland

The basaltic, phreatomagmatic eruption of Grímsv?tn volcano, Iceland, in November 2004 (G2004) lasted for 5?days, during which time two separate vents were active. Significant deposition of tephra occurred in the first 45?h only. We have subdivided the deposit into seven units (A–G) on the basis of differences in texture, grain size and componentry, and the presence of sharp contacts between the layers. The distribution of tephra lobes was used to infer the vent of origin for each unit. The G2004 deposit is poorly sorted overall and consists of non-vesicular to highly vesicular juvenile components. Units A and B comprise almost exclusively non- to poorly vesicular glass fragments, whereas units C–G contain at least 30?vol.% highly vesicular pumice. The proportion of non-juvenile fragments increases significantly in the final unit (unit F) of the main phase; non-juvenile fragments are restricted to the coarse (>0 Φ) fraction of the deposit. Main phase units C and E account for 80% of the total deposit volume, including the entire distal portion, and are interpreted to represent a mixture of (1) a widely dispersed component that fell from the upper margins of a strongly inclined (～45°), 6–10?km high plume and (2) a locally dispersed (<3?km from source) component originating from pyroclastic density currents and minor tephra jets.     

Mortality in England during the 1783–4 Laki Craters eruption

1783/4 has been recognised as a mortality crisis year in the population history of England. This demographic incident coincides with the Laki Craters eruption, Iceland, which began in June 1783 and fumigated many parts of Europe with volcanic gases and particles. Many reports and proxy climate records implicate the volcanic cloud in meteorological anomalies, including notably hot 1783 summer conditions in England and a severe subsequent winter. We present here a detailed analysis of the geographical and temporal trends in English mortality data, and interpret them in the light of the climatological records and observations of the pollutant cloud. We show that there were two distinct crisis periods: in August-September 1783, and January-February 1784, which together accounted for ~20,000 extra deaths. In both cases, the East of England was the worst affected region. Possible causes for the two crisis periods are considered and we conclude that the timing and magnitude of the winter mortality peak can be explained by the severe cold of January 1784. The late summer mortality followed 1–2 months after the very hot July of 1783 and may also have been related to the weather, with the time lag reflecting the relatively slow spread of enteric disease or the contraction of malaria. However, it is hard to explain the entire late summer anomaly by these high temperature causes. We therefore consider that fine acid aerosol and/or gases in the volcanic haze may also have contributed to the unusual August-September mortality. Given that complex radiative and dynamical effects of the volcanic cloud are implicated in the climatic anomalies in 1783–4, it is likely that the Laki Craters eruption did play a role in the English mortality crises of the same period.Editorial responsibility: R. Cioni     

The growth of an extrusive dome on Shiveluch Volcano, Kamchatka in 1980–2007: Geodetic observations and video surveys

This paper concerns observations in 1980–2007 of an intracrater extrusive dome growing on Shiveluch Volcano. Information is provided on the main phases in the generation of the lava dome. The rate of growth and discharge of erupted lava are shown to vary over time. The 1980–1981 discharge was very low during the initial phase in the generation of the lava dome, not above 0.1–0.2 million cubic meters per day. When the extrusion began to grow again, the highest discharge of ejecta was recorded in 1993, as much as 1.25 million cubic meters per day. The maximum rates of growth and discharge of ejecta are generally observed during the first few months of extrusion generation following the resumption of the eruptive process. Powerful explosive eruptions that accompany the extrusive process provoke an acceleration of dome growth. The periods of explosive eruptions had discharges three orders of magnitude greater than those during the most productive extrusive periods. This nonuniformity in extrusion generation reflects nonuniformities in magma supply, and also indicates the existence of a shallow magma chamber at depths of 4–6 km.     

Clarifying the distal to proximal tephrochronology of the Millennium (B–Tm) eruption,Changbaishan Volcano,northeast China

Tephra dispersed during the Millennium eruption (ME), Changbaishan Volcano, NE China provides one of the key stratigraphic links between Asia and Greenland for the synchronization of palaeoenvironmental records. However, controversy surrounds proximal-distal tephra correlations because (a) the proposed proximal correlatives of the distal ME tephra (i.e. B–Tm) lack an unequivocal chronostratigraphic context, and (b) the ME tephra deposits have not been chemically characterized for a full spectrum of element using grain-specific techniques. Here we present grain-specific glass chemistry, including for the first time, single grain trace element data, for a composite proximal sequence and a distal tephra from Lake Kushu, northern Japan (ca. 1100 km away from Changbaishan). We demonstrate a robust proximal-distal correlation and that the Kushu tephra is chemically associated with the ME/B–Tm. We propose that three of the proximal pyroclastic fall units were erupted as part of the ME. The radiocarbon chronology of the Kushu sedimentary record has been utilised to generate a Bayesian age-depth model, providing an age for the Kushu tephra which is consistent with high resolution ages determined for the eruption and therefore supports our geochemical correlation. Two further Bayesian age-depth models were independently constructed each incorporating one of two ice-core derived ages for the B–Tm tephra, providing Bayesian modelled ages of 933–949 and 944–947 cal AD (95.4%) for the Kushu tephra. The high resolution ice-core tephra ages imported into the deposition models help test and ultimately constrain the radiocarbon chronology in this interval of the Lake Kushu sedimentary record. The observed geochemical diversity between proximal and distal ME tephra deposits clearly evidences the interaction of two compositionally distinct magma batches during this caldera forming eruption.     

Emplacement and inflation of natrocarbonatitic lava flows during the March–April 2006 eruption of Oldoinyo Lengai,Tanzania

The most voluminous eruption of natrocarbonatite lava hitherto recorded on Earth occurred at Oldoinyo Lengai in March–April 2006. The lava flows produced in this eruption range from blocky 'a'a type to smooth-surfaced inflated pahoehoe. We measured lava inflation features (i.e. one tumulus and three pressure ridges) that formed in the various pahoehoe flows emplaced in this event. The inflation features within the main crater of Oldoinyo Lengai are relatively small-scale, measuring 1-5 m in width, 2.5–24.4 m in length and with inflation clefts less than 0.4 m deep. Their small sizes are in contrast to a tumulus that formed on the northwestern slope of the volcano (situated ~1140 m below the crater floor). The tumulus is roughly circular, measures 17.5 × 16.0 m, and is cut by a 4.4 m deep axial inflation cleft exposing two separate flow units. We measured the elastic properties (i.e. shear- and bulk moduli) of natrocarbonatitic crust and find that these are similar to those reported for basaltic crust, and that there is no direct correlation between magmastatic head and pressure required to form tumuli. All inflated flows in the 2006 event were confined by lateral barriers (main crater, erosional channel or erosional gully) suggesting that the two most important factors for endogenous growth in natrocarbonatitic lava flows are (1) lateral barriers that prevent widening of the flow, and (2) influx of new material beneath the viscoelastic and brittle crust.     

Ground-Surface Movements in the Ust’-Kamchatsk Deformation Site,Kamchatka during 1987–2016

This paper presents measurements for the 1987–2016 period; these include inclined distances and elevations between geodetic monuments in the deformation site in the Ust’-Kamchatsk area. These data are important for future investigators, because measurements can be made in the distant future in order to compare with the respective past values. This area has been accumulating deformation for the last 27 years along the direction perpendicular to the Kuril–Kamchatka Benioff zone, reaching values of approximately (5?10) × 10–6. The compression involves a northwest tilt of the ground surface.