Character, mass, distribution, and origin of tephra-fall deposits of the 1989–1990 eruption of redoubt volcano, south-central Alaska

Abstract

The 1989–1990 eruption of Redoubt Volcano spawned about 20 areally significant tephra-fall deposits between December 14, 1989 and April 26, 1990. Tephra plumes rose to altitudes of 7 to more than 10 km and were carried mainly northward and eastward by prevailing winds, where they substantially impacted air travel, commerce, and other activities. In comparison to notable eruptions of the recent past, the Redoubt events produced a modest amount of tephra-fall deposits − 6 × 10 7 to 5 × 10 10 kg for individual events and a total volume (dense-rock equivalent) of about 3–5 × 10 7 m 3 of andesite and dacite. Two contrasting tephra types were generated by these events. Pumiceous tephra-fall deposits of December 14 and 15 were followed on December 16 and all later events by fine-grained lithic-crystal tephra deposits, much of which fell as particle aggregates. The change in the character of the tephra-fall deposits reflects their fundamentally different modes of origin. The pumiceous deposits were produced by magmatically driven explosions. The finegrained lithic-crystal deposits were generated by two processes. Hydrovolcanic vent explosions generated tephrafall deposits of December 16 and 19. Such explosions continued as a tephra source, but apparently with diminishing importance, during events of January and February. Ash clouds of lithic pyroclastic flows generated by collapse of actively growing lava domes probably contributed to tephra-fall deposits of all events from January 2 to April 26, and were the sole source of tephra fall for at least the last 4 deposits.