The caldera of Volcan Fernandina: a remote sensing study of its structure and recent activity

Air photographs taken in 1946, 1960, and 1982, together with SPOT HVR-1 images obtained in April and October of 1988, are used to characterize recent activity in and around the caldera of Fernandina Volcano, West Galapagos Islands. The eruptive and collapse events during this time span appear to be distributed in a NW-SE band across the summit and caldera. On the flanks of the volcano, subtle topographic ridges indicate that this is a long-term preferred orientation of extra-caldera activity as well (although radial and arcuate fissures are found on all sectors). The caldera is formed from the coalescence of multiple collapse features that are also distributed along a NW-SE direction, and these give the caldera its elongate and scalloped outline. The NW and SE benches consist of lavas that ponded in once-separated depressions that have been incorporated into the caldera by more recent collapse. The volume of individual eruptions within the caldera over the observed 42 years appears to be small (4x10⁶ m³) in comparison to the volumes of individual flows exposed in the caldera walls (120–150x10⁶ m³). Field observations (in 1989) of lavas exposed in the caldera walls and their cross-cutting relationships show that there have been at least three generations of calderas, and that at times each was completely filled. An interplay between a varying supply rate to the volcano and a regional stress regime is suggested to be the cause of long-term spatial and volumetric variations in activity. When supply is high, the caldera is filled in relative to collapse and dikes tend to propagate in all directions through the edifice. At other times (such as the present) supply is relatively low; eruptions are small, the caldera is far from being filled in, and dike propagation is influenced by an extra-volcano stress regime.     

Magma chamber evolution prior to the Campanian Ignimbrite and Neapolitan Yellow Tuff eruptions (Campi Flegrei,Italy)

The Campi Flegrei (Campanian Region, Italy) experienced two cataclysmic caldera-forming eruptions which produced the Campanian Ignimbrite (39 ka, CI) and the Neapolitan Yellow Tuff (15 ka, NYT). We studied the minor eruptions before both these large events to understand magma chamber evolution leading towards such catastrophic eruptions. Major, trace element, and Sr and Nd isotope compositions of pre-Campanian Ignimbrite and pre-Neapolitan Yellow Tuff products define distinct geochemical groups, which are here interpreted as distinct magma batches. These batches do not show any transitional trend towards the CI and NYT eruptions. The CI and NYT systems are decoupled geochemically and isotopically. At least one of the pre-CI and one of the pre-NYT erupted magma batches qualifies as mixing endmembers for the large CI and NYT eruptions, and thus, must have been stored in reservoirs for some time to remain available for the CI and NYT eruptions. The least evolved, isotopically distinct magma compositions that are typical of the last phases of the NYT and CI eruptions did not occur before caldera-forming events. Based on the new data, we propose the following scenario: Multiple magma chambers with distinct compositions existed below the Campi Flegrei before the CI and NYT eruptions and remained generally separated for some time unless new magma was recharged. In each case, one of the residing magma reservoirs was recharged by a new large-volume magma input of intermediate composition from a deeper differentiating magma reservoir. This may have triggered the coalescence of the previously separated reservoirs into one large chamber which fed the cataclysmic caldera-forming eruption. Large magma chambers in the Campi Flegrei may therefore be ephemeral features, interrupted by periods of evolution in individual, separated magma reservoirs.     

Structure of the Nemrut caldera (Eastern Anatolia, Turkey) and associated hydrothermal fluid circulation

Plio-Quaternary volcanism played an important role in the present physical state of Eastern Anatolia. Mount Nemrut, situated to the west of Lake Van is one of the main volcanic centers in the region, with a spectacular summit caldera 8.5 × 7 km in diameter. The most recent eruptions of the volcano were in 1441, 1597 and 1692. Nemrut Lake covers the western half of the caldera; it is a deep, half-bowl-shaped lake with a maximum depth of 176 m. Numerous eruption centers are exposed within the caldera as a consequence of magma–water interaction. Current activity of Nemrut caldera is revealed as hot springs, fumaroles and a small, hot lake.Self-potential and bathymetric surveys carried out in the caldera were used to characterize the structure of the caldera and the associated hydrothermal fluid circulation. In addition, analyses based on digital elevation models and satellite imagery were used to improve our knowledge about the structure of the caldera. According to SP results, the flanks of the volcano represent “the hydrogeologic zone”, whereas the intra-caldera region is an “active hydrothermal area” where the fluid circulation is controlled by structural discontinuities. There is also a northern fissure zone which exhibits hydrothermal signatures. Nemrut caldera collapsed piecemeal, with three main blocks. Stress controlling the collapse mechanism seems to be highly affected by the regional neotectonic regime. In addition to the historical activity, current hydrothermal and hydrogeologic conditions in the caldera, in which there is a large lake and shallow water table, increase the risk of the quiescent volcano.     

Zeolitization of intracaldera sediments and rhyolitic rocks in the 1.25 Ma lake of Valles caldera,New Mexico,USA

Quantitative X-ray diffraction analysis of about 80 rhyolite and associated lacustrine rocks has characterized previously unrecognized zeolitic alteration throughout the Valles caldera resurgent dome. The alteration assemblage consists primarily of smectite–clinoptilolite–mordenite–silica, which replaces groundmass and fills voids, especially in the tuffs and lacustrine rocks. Original rock textures are routinely preserved. Mineralization typically extends to depths of only a few tens of meters and resembles shallow “caldera-type zeolitization” as defined by Utada et al. [Utada, M., Shimizu, M., Ito, T., Inoue, A., 1999. Alteration of caldera-forming rocks related to the Sanzugawa volcanotectonic depression, northeast Honshu, Japan — with special reference to “caldera-type zeolitization.” Resource Geol. Spec. Issue No. 20, 129–140]. Geology and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dates limit the period of extensive zeolite growth to roughly the first 30 kyr after the current caldera formed (ca. 1.25 to 1.22 Ma). Zeolitic alteration was promoted by saturation of shallow rocks with alkaline lake water (a mixture of meteoric waters and degassed hydrothermal fluids) and by high thermal gradients caused by cooling of the underlying magma body and earliest post-caldera rhyolite eruptions. Zeolitic alteration of this type is not found in the later volcanic and lacustrine rocks of the caldera moat (≤ 0.8 Ma) suggesting that later lake waters were cooler and less alkaline. The shallow zeolitic alteration does not have characteristics resembling classic, alkaline lake zeolite deposits (no analcime, erionite, or chabazite) nor does it contain zeolites common in high-temperature hydrothermal systems (laumontite or wairakite). Although aerially extensive, the early zeolitic alteration does not form laterally continuous beds and are consequently, not of economic significance.     

Discovery of a huge sector collapse at the Nisyros volcano,Greece, by on-land and offshore geological-structural data

This study uses on-land and offshore geological and structural data to demonstrate that a huge lateral collapse involved the SE flank of Nisyros volcano. The collapse beheaded the summit part of the volcano and also involved the submarine portion of the slope, producing a large debris avalanche deposit with a volume of about 1 km³ which has been recognized on the sea floor. On-land, stratigraphic and structural data indicate that a thick succession of lava flows (Nikia lavas) was emplaced in a huge horseshoe-shaped depression open seaward and extending below the sea. The magma-feeding system in the volcano, pre-dating and following the collapse, was structurally influenced by a dominant NE–SW direction, which is perpendicular to the newly-recognised sector collapse. The NE–SW structural trend is consistent with the regional tectonic structures found offshore around Nisyros and with the related NW–SE extension direction. We suggest that the lateral magma pressure produced by repeated magma injections along tectonic discontinuities contributed to destabilise the volcano flank. The occurrence of a pyroclastic deposit that mantled the scar left by the collapse suggests that a magma batch might have been injected inside the volcano and triggered the collapse. The lavas of the pre-collapse edifice have been deposited in alternating submarine and subaerial environments, suggesting that vertical movements might also be a major triggering mechanism for large lateral collapses. Recognition of this phenomenon is particularly important in recent/active island or coastal volcanoes, as it can trigger tsunamis.     

Volcanoes as elastic inclusions: Their effects on the propagation of dykes,volcanic fissures,and volcanic zones in Iceland

Mechanically, many volcanoes may be regarded as elastic inclusions, either softer (with a lower Young's modulus) or stiffer (with a higher Young's modulus) than the host-rock matrix. For example, many central volcanoes (stratovolcanoes, composite volcanoes) are composed of rocks that are softer than the crustal segments that host them. This is particularly clear in Iceland where central volcanoes are mostly made of soft rocks such as rhyolite, pyroclastics, hyaloclastites, and sediments whereas the host rock is primarily stiff basaltic lava flows. Most active central volcanoes also contain fluid magma chambers, and many have collapse calderas. Fluid magma chambers are best modelled as cavities (in three dimensions) or holes (in two dimensions), entire calderas as holes, and the ring faults themselves, which commonly include soft materials such as breccias, as soft inclusions. Many hyaloclastite (basaltic breccias) mountains partly buried in the basaltic lava pile also function as soft inclusions. Modelling volcanoes as soft inclusions or holes, we present three main numerical results. The first, using the hole model, shows the mechanical interaction between all the active central volcanoes in Iceland and, in particular, those forming the two main clusters at the north and south end of the East Volcanic Zone (EVZ). The strong indication of mechanical interaction through shared dykes and faults in the northern cluster of the EVZ is supported by observations. The second model, using a soft inclusion, shows that the Torfajökull central volcano, which contains the largest active caldera in Iceland, suppresses the spreading-generated tensile stress in its surroundings. We propose that this partly explains why the proper rift zone northeast of Torfajökull has not managed to propagate through the volcano. Apparently, Torfajökull tends to slow down the rate of southwest propagation of the rift-zone part of the EVZ. The third model, again using a soft inclusion, indicates how the lateral propagation of a segment of the 1783 Laki fissure became arrested in the slopes of the hyaloclastite mountain Laki.     

Simultaneous inversion of deformation and gravity changes in a horizontally layered half-space: Evidences for magma intrusion during the 1982–1984 unrest at Campi Flegrei caldera (Italy)

A very large uplift (about 1.8 m) occurred in the period 1982–1984 at Campi Flegrei caldera, Italy, without culminating in an eruption. A still-standing controversy accompanies the interpretation of deformation and gravity changes recorded during the unrest, which were interpreted to result from the sub-surface magmatic reservoir by some authors and from the hydrothermal system or hybrid sources by others. Here for the first time we take into account crustal layering while inverting leveling, EDM, and gravity data using uniformly-pressurized sources, namely small vertical spheroids and finite horizontal penny-shaped sources. The weight of EDM data in the misfit function is chosen from a trade-off curve in order to balance the compromise between fitting the leveling and the EDM data well. Models using a homogeneous medium cannot give a good simultaneous fit to leveling and EDM deformation data of the 1982–1984 unrest, whereas incorporating a layered structure (determined from seismically derived estimates of the P wave speed for the crust, and not adjusted to improve the fit in any of the inversions) allows a significantly better fit. Also, layering affects the sub-surface mass redistribution effects on gravity changes, and we show that the retrieved intrusion density is in full agreement with densities for highly evolved magmas expected at the Campi Flegrei caldera for depths of 3 to 4 km, ruling out hydrothermal fluids as the primary cause of the 1982–1984 unrest. The source of the 1982–1984 CF unrest was probably a shallow (about 3-km deep) penny-shaped magma intrusion fed by a deeper magma chamber; source overpressure was few MPa.     

Unrest episodes at Campi Flegrei: A reconstruction of vertical ground movements during 1905–2009

Geodetic observations at Campi Flegrei caldera were initiated in 1905. Historical observations and the few measurements made before 1970 suggested a deflationary trend. Since 1969, the ground started to inflate during two major uplift episodes in 1969–72 and 1982–1985. We collected and reanalyzed all available punctual observations of vertical ground displacement taken in the period 1905–2009 with special attention to the period before 1969, to reconstruct in greater detail the deformation history of the caldera. We make use of the many photographs of the sea level in a roman ruin (the Serapeum Market) taken during the period between 1905 and 1969 to infer with more accuracy its relative height with respect to the sea level. We identify a previously disregarded major episode of ground uplift occurred between 1950 and 1952 with a maximum uplift of about 73 cm. This finding suggests that Campi Flegrei is currently experiencing a prolonged period of unrest longer than previously thought. The higher seismicity associated with the later episodes of unrest suggests that the volcano has approached an instability threshold, which may eventually result in a volcanic eruption.