Chapter 3 Development of the Santorini volcanic field in space and time

Abstract

Excerpt Santorini is one of the largest Quaternary volcanic centres of the Aegean Region. The caldera cliffs preserve well-exposed sequences of lavas and pyroclastic deposits, which record the long development of the volcano in space and time. These include the products of 12 major explosive eruptions and the dissected remains of several ancient lava shields, stratovolcanoes, and lava-dome complexes. The former existence of multiple eruptive centres scattered over the present-day islands shows that Santorini is best considered as a volcanic field , which probably also continues under the sea (Heiken & McCoy 1984). Santorini is best known for the Minoan eruption of the late Bronze Age (Bond & Sparks 1976; Heiken & McCoy 1984; Sparks & Wilson 1990), but some of the previous explosive eruptions may have been as large (Druitt et al . 1989). The occurrence of repeated explosive eruptions has triggered formation of at least four large calderas, such that the present-day caldera is a composite structure (Druitt & Francaviglia 1992). Santorini is potentially one of the most dangerous volcanoes in Europe, having had numerous eruptions in historic times, some of them with significant explosive components (Fytikas et al . 1990 a ). The evolution of Santorini has been the focus of several detailed studies (Fouqué 1879; Reck 1936; Pichler & Kussmaul 1980; Heiken & McCoy 1984; Huijsmans 1985; Druitt et al . 1989; Druitt & Francaviglia 1992) as summarized in Chapter 1. Pichler & Kussmaul (1980) published a geological map of the islands that has been the basis of volcanological studies for the last