Chemical monitoring of volcanic gas using remote FT-IR spectroscopy at several active volcanoes in Japan

Chemical compositions of volcanic gases of several Japanese active volcanoes have been monitored from distant safe places since the beginning of the 1990s using an FT-IR spectral radiometer. For absorption measurements, an infrared light source behind volcanic gas emissions is necessary in a volcanic environment. In the early observations, infrared radiation from hot lava domes (Unzen volcano) and hot ground heated by high-temperature fumaroles (Usu, Aso, and Satsuma-Iwojima volcanoes) were used as infrared light sources. However, these sources were not available in many cases. This remote FT-IR method became more commonly applied to chemical monitoring of volcanic gases emitted from the summit or slopes of active volcanoes using scattered solar infrared light as infrared light sources (Sakurajima, Miyakejima, and Asama volcanoes). To date, eight species have been measured using this method: SO₂, HCl, HF, CO, CO₂, COS, SiF₄, and H₂O. The observations indicate that volcanic gases for each volcano have different chemical composition on a SO₂–HCl–HF ternary diagram in spite of similar tectonic settings, suggesting that vapor/melt volume ratios during volcanic gas formation differ among volcanoes. During more than 15 years of monitoring, chemical changes in volcanic gases attributable to ascent of magma were observed only at Asama, where HCl/SO₂ and HF/HCl ratios in the eruptive period were higher than those in non-eruptive period because of scrubbing of more soluble components in surface hydrothermal systems in the non-eruptive stage or solubility-controlled fractionation processes. Results show that these parameters are the most prospective ones among the various parameters measured using the remote FT-IR method to monitor volcanic activities.     

Geochemistry of the Lesser Antilles volcanic island arc

New analyses of 1518 rocks for major and certain trace elements are used to examine chemical variations between the 15 larger volcanic islands of the Lesser Antilles island arc. The depth to the top of the subduction zone dipping westward at about 40° lies about 100km below all the volcanoes of the arc. Most of the sampled eruptions are post-Miocene (5-1 m.y.) although south of Martinique, the Oligocene-Miocene and the younger arc are superimposed.There is a chemical variation along the arc axis, from alkalic (southern) through calc-alkalic (central) to tholeiitic (northern) volcanic suites. Three islands are examined in detail as type examples of this variation, i.e. Grenada (south), Dominica (centre), and St. Kitts (north). The Grenada suite includes basanites, alkalic basalts, and subalkalic basalts, andesites and dacites. The subalkalic basalts, andesites and dacites each fall into three chemical groupings along the axis of the arc, distinguished especially by K, Zr, Ni and Cr abundances. The whole Lesser Antilles assemblage is characterised by low K abundances and low K/Rb ratios, compared with other island arcs.The magmas are believed to have evolved through processes of partial melting and crystal fractionation. Partial melting of garnet Iherzolite at about 100km depth in a relatively ‘fertile’ zone of upper mantle in the southern sector, above the subducted slab of basaltic ocean crust, could have produced the undersaturated alkalic magmas. In the central and northern sectors, where the crustal structures are more complex, partial melting may have occurred within more ‘barren’ upper mantle, to produce tholeiitic and calc-alkalic magmas depleted in certain trace elements. In either case, water was probably added to the melted zone from the subducted and hydrated oceanic crust, since the whole arc assemblage was erupted explosively and the rocks are rich in A1₂O₃, plagioclase is very calcic, and amphibole is an important phase. The second process was crystal fractionation at low pressure, as evidenced by the abundance of cumulate xenoliths. Separating phases for the southern volcanoes were olivine, calcic augite and Cr-spinel, followed by hornblende, anorthite and Ti-magnetite at lower temperatures. There is little evidence of the higher-temperature fractionation controls for the central and northern volcanoes.     

A new model for the evolution of table mountains: volcanological and petrological evidence from herdubreid and Herdubreidartögl volcanoes (Iceland)

We present a new model for the evolution of volcanic table mountains, based on volcanological and petrological studies of Herdubreid/Herdubreidartögl, an upper Pleistocene volcanic complex within the active Icelandic rift zone. The evolution of these table mountains is highly complex and influenced substantially by different eruptive environments as well as changing magma sources and volcanic and magmatic processes. Whereas current models imply entirely subglacial conditions and continuous compositional (“monogenetic”) evolution for these volcanoes, we subdivide their evolution into four eruptive periods characterized by different environments: (a) Subaerial lava flows erupted during an interglacial period. (b) Lavas and voluminous hydroclastic deposits formed in a lake during a waning period of the last glaciation. (c) Subglacial eruptions during thickening of the ice sheet as a result of a climatic deterioration built pillow lava piles overlain by steep-sided complexes of hydroclastic deposits. These deposits differ from those of the second eruptive period in structure, texture, and degree of alteration. Subaerial lava flows and agglutinates covered these deposits after buildup above the ice sheet. (d) Subaerial lava flows and fallout deposits during a postglacial period. The detailed analysis of volcanic table mountains appears to be a very sensitive indicator of climatic fluctuations. Although most deposits of the studied volcanoes were formed during the waning period of the last glaciation, the subglacial deposits in the upper part of the volcanic complex reflect a temporary, but major, thickening of the ice sheet.     

Aleutian tholeiitic and calc-alkaline magma series I: The mafic phenocrysts

Diagnostic mafic silicate assemblages in a continuous spectrum of Aleutian volcanic rocks provide evidence for contrasts in magmatic processes in the Aleutian arc crust. Tectonic segmentation of the arc exerts a primary control on the variable mixing, fractional crystallization and possible assimilation undergone by the magmas. End members of the continuum are termed calc-alkaline (CA) and tholeiitic (TH). CA volcanic rocks (e.g., Buldir and Moffett volcanoes) have low FeO/MgO ratios and contain compositionally diverse phenocryst populations, indicating magma mixing. Their Ni and Cr-rich magnesian olivine and clinopyroxene come from mantle-derived mafic olivine basalts that have mixed with more fractionated magmas at mid-to lower-crustal levels immediately preceding eruption. High-Al amphibole is associated with the mafic end member. In contrast, TH lavas (e.g., Okmok and Westdahl volcanoes) have high FeO/MgO ratios and contain little evidence for mixing. Evolved lavas represent advanced stages of low pressure crystallization from a basaltic magma. These lavas contain groundmass olivine (FO 40–50) and lack Ca-poor pyroxene. Aleutian volcanic rocks with intermediate FeO/MgO ratios are termed transitional tholeiitic (TTH) and calc-alkaline (TCA). TCA magmas are common (e.g., Moffett, Adagdak, Great Sitkin, and Kasatochi volcanoes) and have resulted from mixing of high-Al basalt with more evolved magmas. They contain amphibole (high and low-Al) or orthopyroxene or both and are similar to the Japanese hypersthene-series. TTH magmas (e.g., Okmok and Westdahl) contain orthopyroxene or pigeonite or both, and show some indication of upper crustal mixing. They are mineralogically similar to the Japanese pigeonite-series. High-Al basalt lacks Mg-rich mafic phases and is a derivative magma produced by high pressure fractionation of an olivine tholeiite. The low pressure mineral assemblage of high-Al basalt results from crystallization at higher crustal levels.     

Modern analogues for Miocene to Pleistocene alkali basaltic phreatomagmatic fields in the Pannonian Basin: “soft-substrate” to “combined” aquifer controlled phreatomagmatism in intraplate volcanic fields Research Article

The Pannonian Basin (Central Europe) hosts numerous alkali basaltic volcanic fields in an area similar to 200 000 km². These volcanic fields were formed in an approximate time span of 8 million years producing smallvolume volcanoes typically considered to be monogenetic. Polycyclic monogenetic volcanic complexes are also common in each field however. The original morphology of volcanic landforms, especially phreatomagmatic volcanoes, is commonly modified. by erosion, commonly aided by tectonic uplift. The phreatomagmatic volcanoes eroded to the level of their sub-surface architecture expose crater to conduit filling as well as diatreme facies of pyroclastic rock assemblages. Uncertainties due to the strong erosion influenced by tectonic uplifts, fast and broad climatic changes, vegetation cover variations, and rapidly changing fluvio-lacustrine events in the past 8 million years in the Pannonian Basin have created a need to reconstruct and visualise the paleoenvironment into which the monogenetic volcanoes erupted. Here phreatomagmatic volcanic fields of the Miocene to Pleistocene western Hungarian alkali basaltic province have been selected and compared with modern phreatomagmatic fields. It has been concluded that the Auckland Volcanic Field (AVF) in New Zealand could be viewed as a prime modern analogue for the western Hungarian phreatomagmatic fields by sharing similarities in their pyroclastic successions textures such as pyroclast morphology, type, juvenile particle ratio to accidental lithics. Beside the AVF two other, morphologically more modified volcanic fields (Pali Aike, Argentina and Jeju, Korea) show similar features to the western Hungarian examples, highlighting issues such as preservation potential of pyroclastic successions of phreatomagmatic volcanoes.     

Strontium isotope ratios of quaternary volcanic rocks from Papua New Guinea

Strontium isotope data for Quaternary volcanic rocks from six separate areas in Papua New Guinea suggest a subdivision into two broad groups. One group consists of island volcanoes that have lower Sr³⁷/Sr³⁸ ratios (0.7034–0.7043) and show isotopic homogeneity within each area sampled. Except for the St. Andrew Strait samples, it is considered that these rocks were produced from relatively homogeneous source regions in the upper mantle. Volcanoes of the second group (on the Papua New Guinea mainland) have generally a higher and wider range of Sr³⁷/Sr³⁶ ratios, compared to those of the first group. It is thought that the magmas of these mainland volcanoes were affected by different degrees of sialic crustal contamination, or were derived from heterogeneous sources in the upper mantle.     

Geochemical similarities between the Vesuvius, Phlegraean Fields and Stromboli Volcanoes: petrogenetic, geodynamic and volcanological implications

Summary Vesuvius and Stromboli are two active and extensively studied volcanoes that traditionally have been considered as having different styles of eruption, rock composition and tectonic setting. Data reveal close compositional affinities between these two volcanoes. The abundant 13–15 Ka old Stromboli leucite-tephritic rocks have radiogenic isotope signatures, and abundances and ratios of incompatible elements with the exception of Rb and K, which are identical to those of Vesuvius. The Phlegraean Fields also show close affinities to these volcanoes. The similarity between Stromboli leucite-tephrites and Vesuvius rocks cannot be the result of low pressure processes, given the differences between the two volcanoes in terms of structural features, eruptive behaviour and type of basement rocks. Instead, the observed geochemical signatures are likely to represent a primary magma composition and reveal a common homogeneous source for the two suites. The higher K and Rb contents in the Vesuvius rocks suggest either selective enrichment during magma ascent or a role for phlogopite melting during mantle anatexis. The most primitive rocks from Vesuvius, Phlegraean Fields and Stromboli reveal intermediate compositions between arc and intraplate volcanics. It is suggested that the mantle sources beneath these volcanoes consist of a mixture of intraplate- and slab-derived components. Intraplate material was probably provided by inflow of asthenosheric mantle into the wedge above the subducting Ionian Sea plate, either from the Apulian plate and/or from the Tyrrhenian Sea region. Fluids or melts released from the sinking slab and associated sediments generated metasomatic modification of the intraplate material, whose melting gave rise to the Stromboli, Vesuvius and Phlegraean Fields magmas. The present study demonstrates how comparative investigations of various volcanic centres from southern Italy allow clarification of a number of problems involving magma genesis and evolution, composition of mantle sources and geodynamic significance, which have been long debated and are difficult to solve if individual volcanoes are considered in isolation. Received July 20, 2000; revised version accepted March 19, 2001     

Geochronology and evolution of quaternary volcanism at the Keli Highland,Greater Caucasus

The paper reports newly obtained stratigraphic, petrographic, and isotope-geochronological data on modern moderately acid lavas from the Keli Highland at the Greater Caucasus and presents a geological map of the territory, in which 35 volcanoes active in Late Quaternary time were documented by the authors. The total duration of volcanic activity at the highland was estimated at 250 ka. The volcanic activity was discrete and occurred in three phases: Middle Neopleistocene (245−170 ka), Late Neopleistocene (135−70 ka), and Late Neopleistocene-Holocene (<30 ka). Newly obtained lines of evidence indicate that certain volcanoes erupted in the latest Neopleistocene-Holocene. The first phase of volcanic activity was connected mainly with lava volcanoes, and eruptions during the later phases of volcanic activity in this part of the Greater Caucasus produced mainly lavas. The most significant eruptions are demonstrated to occur in the territory during the second phase. The major evolutionary trends of volcanic processes during the final phase in the Keli Highland are determined. It was also determined that the overwhelming majority of volcanoes that were active less than 30 ka B.P. are spatially restricted to long-liven local magmatic zones, which were active during either all three or only the final two phases of activity. These parts of the territory are, perhaps, the most hazardous in terms of volcanic activity.     

斑点火山的形成机制和岩石圈-软流圈边界(LAB)的性质

近二十年来,在俯冲带外缘发现的斑点火山群代表了一种全新的海底岩浆活动类型.这种火山规模很小,成簇出现,年龄异常年轻,岩样以EM1型碱性玄武岩为主,孔隙度高且富含挥发性组分.有关斑点火山的岩浆起源以及与岩浆上涌相关的动力学过程目前仍然存在广泛的争论.本文系统性地介绍了斑点火山的特征,总结了前人针对其形成机制和岩浆源区研究...     

火山海岸与环境反馈——以海岛火山海岸为例

海南岛火山海岸以沿小火山口形成的海蚀地貌和全新世火山爆发使局部海湾抬升为海岸阶地、河口堵流并形成深切海湾以及促进了珊瑚礁发育为特征。火山活动改变了海岸带的地势、坡度、动力条件、沉积特征以及海岸演变趋势,火山海岸发育受到构造内动力、波浪、潮流、风化作用等外动力以及生物作用的多重影响。火山岩岩性和时代反映出北部湾湾底的现代拉张构造活动。夏威夷火山海岸的环境效应以造陆和板块移动形成岛链、近期熔岩流喷溢改变地貌和大气质量等为特征。现代日本鹿儿岛火山碎屑喷发物掩埋道路和建筑物并促发泥石流灾害,改变着火山海岸作用过程。对比研究火山海岸及其环境效应,及时预报并进而制定有效的防灾、减灾对策。     

Trace element and isotopic variations from Mt. Vulture to Campanian volcanoes: constraints for slab detachment and mantle inflow beneath southern Italy

New Sr–Nd–Pb isotopic ratios and trace element data for volcanic mafic rocks outcropping along a E–W transect in southern Italy, from Mt. Vulture to Neapolitan volcanoes, are reported. The variation of LILE/HFSE, HFSE/HFSE and radiogenic isotopes along this transect indicates that all of these volcanoes contain both intra-plate and subduction-related signatures, with the former decreasing from Mt. Vulture to Campanian volcanoes. New data are also reported for the Paleocene alkaline rocks from Pietre Nere (Apulia foreland), which show isotopic ratios mostly overlapping the values for Mediterranean intra-plate volcanoes as well as the Eocene–Oligocene alkaline mafic lavas from the northern Adria plate. Pietre Nere provides evidence for an OIB mantle composition of FOZO-type, free of subduction influences, that is present beneath the Adria plate (Africa) before its collision with Europe. After this collision, and formation of the southern Apennines, westward inflow of mantle from the Adria plate to the Campanian area occurred, as a consequence of slab break off. Interaction of subduction components with inflowing Adria mantle generated hybrid sources beneath the Vulture–Campania area, which can explain the compositional features of both Mt. Vulture and the Campanian mafic rocks. Therefore, mafic magmas from these volcanoes represent variable degrees of mixing between different mantle components.     

Myojin Rift, Izu–Bonin Arc as the Modern Analog of Hokuroku Basin, Northeast Japan: Geotectonic Significance of the New Hydrothermal Deposit in the Back-Arc Rift

A huge hydrothermal field, named the "Hakurei Sulfide Deposit" (HSD) was discovered in the North Myojin Rift (NMR), Izu–Bonin Back-Arc Rift (BAR) during the 2003 survey cruise of R/V Hakurei-maru No.2 . This paper investigates the geotectonic features and the tectonic setting of ore deposits between the NMR and the Hokuroku Basin, which is representative of kuroko fields in Japan. The topographic features of the NMR and the Hokuroku Basin are similar. Both have a clear ring structure surrounded by faults and the east–west width is almost the same. Many kuroko deposits were formed on the extrusion centers of the five pre-mineral acidic volcanic complexes, located in a loop inside the Hokuroku Basin. In the case of the NMR, seven submarine volcanoes are also located in a loop, and the HSD formed inside the summit caldera of Bayonnaise Knoll, which is one of the seven volcanoes. These topographic similarities highlight that the NMR is a modern analog of the Hokuroku Basin. Identifying such similarities is extremely useful when prospecting kuroko deposits on land equivalents as well as on the other segments of the Izu–Bonin BAR. The probability of finding kuroko deposits on land is expected to increase when the following are identified: (i) location of back-arc rift and the volcanic front; (ii) direction of the arc–trench system and intra-rift faults (and/or fracture zone); (iii) position of submarine volcanoes surrounding a back-arc rift; and (iv) intersections of a caldera fault and intra-rift fault (and/or fracture zone) inside the summit caldera of submarine volcanoes. Within these aforementioned points a ring structure, acidic volcanic complexes that circle the circuit and submarine calderas along the volcanic front, are an important indication of submarine hydrothermal deposits.     

地壳再循环与大陆碱性玄武岩的成因：以山东新生代碱性玄武岩为例

      大陆碱性玄武岩在地球化学特征上与洋岛玄武岩高度相似,被看做是板内玄武岩在大陆上的典型代表。本文以山东 新生代碱性玄武岩为例,探讨大陆碱性玄武岩的成因。山东新生代碱性玄武岩按时空分布特征可以分为两类：早期定向分 布、相互平行的三个火山群（包括鲁西的潍坊火山群、沂水火山群和胶东的蓬莱火山群）和晚期杂乱分布的孤立小火山。 早期火山群碱性较弱,以碱性橄榄玄武岩和碧玄岩为主,微量元素特征和同位素组成变化大;晚期孤立小火山碱性强,以 碧玄岩和霞石岩为主,微量元素特征和同位素组成较均一。因此,从岩性组成和时空分布特征看,山东的火山群相当于洋 岛/海山的造盾期玄武岩,而孤立小火山接近于洋岛/海山上的复苏期玄武岩。潍坊火山群和沂水火山群在Sr-Nd,Nd-Hf同位 素相关图上都存在从亏损到富集的两端元混合排列趋势,但两者的排列趋势有一点区别。其中同位素富集的端元相对于原 始地幔具有偏低的Ce/Pb比和偏高的Ba/Th比,指示其为大陆下地壳物质。同时,这种富集端元的Th/La比值明显低于大陆下 地壳的平均值,其放射成因Hf相对于放射成因Nd过剩（即Nd-Hf同位素解耦）,说明这种富集端元不是岩浆上升过程中混染 的下地壳物质,而是经历过早期熔融的再循环大陆下地壳（榴辉岩或者石榴辉石岩）。鲁西两个平行火山群在同位素排列上 的区别类似于夏威夷玄武岩中的KEA链和LOA链,因此,山东的平行火山群的深部动力学背景可能是地幔柱,再循环大陆 下地壳物质可能是这种地幔柱的重要组成物质。晚期的孤立小火山在地球化学特征上与火成碳酸岩非常相似,如在原始地 幔标准化图上都具有K,Pb,Zr,Hf,Ti的负异常等特征,因此我们认为其地幔源区为碳酸盐化的橄榄岩。孤立小火山中等亏损 的Sr,Nd,Hf同位素特征支持碳酸岩熔体来自年轻的（中生代？）再循环洋壳。     

The Vulnerability of Canada to Volcanic Hazards

Western Canada lies in a zone of active tectonics and volcanism, but thedispersed population has witnessed few eruptions due to the remoteness of the volcanoes and their low level ofactivity. This has created a false perception that Canada's volcanoes are extinct.There are more than 200 potentially-active volcanoes in Canada, 49of which have erupted in the past 10,000 years. They occur in five belts, with origins related totectonic environment. The minimum annual probability of a Canadian volcanic eruption is approximately 1/200;for an effusive (lava) eruption the probability is about 1/220, and for a significant explosive eruptionit is about 1/3333. In-progress studies show that there have been earthquakes associated with at least 9 ofthe youngest Canadian volcanoes since 1975. A scenario of an eruption of Mt. Cayley (50.1°N,123.3°W) shows how western Canada is vulnerable to an eruption. The scenario is basedon past activity in the Garibaldi volcanic belt and involves both explosive and effusive activity.The scenario impact is largely a result of the concentration of vulnerable infrastructure in valleys.Canadian volcanoes are monitored only by a regional seismic network,that is capable of detecting a M > 2 event in all potentially-active areas.This level of monitoring is probably sufficient to alert scientistsat or near eruption onset, but probably insufficient to allow a timelyforecast of activity. Similarly the level of geological knowledge about the volcanoes is insufficient to createhazard maps. This will improve slightly in 2002 when additional monitoring is implemented in theGaribaldi volcanic belt. The eruption probabilities, possible impacts, monitoring limitations and knowledgegaps suggest that there is a need to increment the volcanic risk mitigation efforts.     

Pinched between the plates: Armenia's voluminous record of volcanic activity

Located in the heart of the Lesser Caucasus mountains, where the Arabian and Eurasian tectonic plates collide, Armenia occupies an exceptional geological position shaped through millions of years of subduction and collision. It is a unique place on the Earth recording extensive intrusive and volcanic activity related to the long-standing continental convergence. The volcanoes of Armenia provide a rare opportunity to study the sources and processes involved in this unusual type of magmatism. More than 500 Quaternary volcanoes have been mapped in Armenia, most of them formed from single eruptive episodes. Among several large composite volcanoes, the mighty Aragats stands out as the largest volcano in Armenia and the region altogether. Volcanic deposits testify to the range of eruptive styles—from the ignimbrites formed in eruptions as explosive and voluminous as any seen globally in the modern era to the enormous fissure-fed lava flows that form the Southern Caucasus flood basalt province, the smallest and youngest Large Igneous Province in the world. Several pre-historical and historical eruptions have been documented, highlighting the potential for future volcanic activity in the region. In recent years, research has focused on the volcanic hazards associated with the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, located in the foothills of Aragats volcano. This article highlights some of the extraordinary volcanic and intrusive features observed in Armenia and summarizes aspects of recent volcanological and petrological research.     

Traversing nature's danger zone: getting up close with Sumatra's volcanoes

The Indonesian island of Sumatra, located in one of the most active zones of the Pacific Ring of Fire, is characterized by a chain of subduction‐zone volcanoes which extend the entire length of the island. As a group of volcanic geochemists, we embarked upon a five‐week sampling expedition to these exotic, remote, and in part explosive volcanoes (SAGE 2010; Sumatran Arc Geochemical Expedition). We set out to collect rock and gas samples from 17 volcanic centres from the Sumatran segment of the Sunda arc system, with the aim of obtaining a regionally significant sample set that will allow quantification of the respective roles of mantle versus crustal sources to magma genesis along the strike of the arc. Here we document our geological journey through Sumatra's unpredictable terrain, including the many challenges faced when working on active volcanoes in pristine tropical climes.     

Geochemical fingerprint of the primary magma composition in the marine tephras originated from the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes

The intraplate Baegdusan (Changbai) and Ulleung volcanoes located on the border of China, North Korea, and East/Japan Sea, respectively, have been explained by appeals to both hotspots and asthenospheric mantle upwelling (wet plume) caused by the stagnant Pacific plate. To understand the origin of the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanism, we performed geochemical analyses on the tephra deposits in the East/Japan Sea basins originating from the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes. The volcanic glass in the tephra from the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes ranged from alkaline trachyte to peralkaline rhyolite and from phonolite to trachyte, respectively. The tephra from the two intraplate volcanoes showed highly enriched incompatible elements, such as Tb, Nb, Hf, and Ta, distinct from those of the ordinary arc volcanoes of the Japanese islands. The straddle distribution of the Th/Yb and Ta/Yb ratios of the tephra deposits from the Baegdusan volcano may originate from the alkali basaltic magma resulting from mixing between the wet plume from the stagnant Pacific plate in the transition zone and the overlying shallow asthenospheric mantle. In contrast, the deposits from the Ulleung volcano show a minor contribution of the stagnant slab to the basaltic magma, implying either partial melting of a more enriched mantle, smaller degrees of partial melting of a garnet-bearing mantle source, or a combination of both processes as the magma genesis. Our study indicated that the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes have different magma sources and evolutionary histories.     

Endogenous sources of dioxin emissions in areas of tectonomagmatic activation using the example of the Sakhalin-Kuril region

Data on the dioxin contents in landscapes of modern active volcanoes, buried volcanic ashes, and fresh ejecta of mud volcanoes are obtained. It is shown that endogenous sources of natural (nontechnogenic) dioxins exist in the areas of tectonomagmatic activation. It is suggested that extremely toxic chemical compounds (dioxins) were continuously supplied to the biosphere during the geological time. The environmental importance of this phenomenon for the biota is still difficult to estimate.     

Phosinaite,a new rare-earth mineral

Using geophysical data, we studied the mechanism of deep-seated magmatic and volcanic activity in the region of the island arcs and associated structures. Data on magmatic activity below the volcanic belt of East Kamchatka, obtained during geophysical investigations, mainly during detailed seismological investigations and deep seismic sounding, provide evidence for an association between the volcanoes and the processes in the Pacific Ocean focal layer of earthquakes, and for the accumulation of magmas below the volcanic belt at depths less than 60 km. We found anomalous columnar bodies more than 5 to 7 km across, linking the volcanoes with the focal layer, and a very large concentration of convective heat flow and volatiles in the magma columns feeding the volcanoes. As to the role of different forces in the uprise of magmas into the volcanoes, hydrostatic forces probably predominate in the asthenosphere, supplemented by tectonic pressure in the lithosphere and forces associated with boiling of magmas during release of volatiles in the crust, especially in its upper layers.—Author.     

火山学述评

火山学研究有了长足的进步。笔者总结近些年全球火山学研究各个方面的成果,包括对火山基本概念的新的认识、火山机构、火山的各种分类、火山岩石学和地球化学、火山岩相学、评估火山爆发大小的火山爆发指数、岩石和地球化学分类、各种常量和微量元素区分图、活火山分布与板块构造理论的关系、活火山给人类带来的灾害与利益和活火山的监测、曾经的火山活动与生物毁灭、单成因火山研究等。火山—构造是未来火山学研究的一个方向,通过火山与构造关系的研究以揭示火山的分布和地球的演化。火山喷出的岩浆是其通过地下以岩墙或管道形式为通道运移到地表的结果。中朝边境上的长白山的位置是个特例,应当值得深入的研究。中国分布有许多新生代火山,它们是否为单成因火山、这些火山在成分上是否有演化规律、它们的分布与大地构造的关系等都有待深入和系统的研究。