Abstract
Between 28 March and 1 April 2020, Stromboli volcano erupted, with overflows from the NE crater rim spreading along the barren Sciara del Fuoco slope and reaching the sea along the NW coast of the island. Poor weather conditions did not allow a detailed observation of the crater zone through the cameras monitoring network, but a clear view of the lower slope and the flows expanding in the area allowed us to characterize the flow features. This evidence was integrated with satellite, GBInSAR, and seismic data, thus enabling a reconstruction of the whole volcanic event, which involved several small collapses of the summit cone and the generation of pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) spreading along the slope and on the sea surface. Satellite monitoring allowed for the mapping of the lava flow field and the quantification of the erupted volume, and GBInSAR continuous measurements detected the crater widening and the deflation of the summit cone caused by the last overflow. The characterization of the seismicity made it possible to identify the signals that are associated with the propagation of PDCs along the volcano flank and, for the first time, to recognize the signal that is produced by the impact of the PDCs on the coast.
Highlights
Rapid changes of the surface morphology often occur in open-conduit basaltic volcanoes that frequently erupt, such as Etna and Stromboli (Italy), Piton de la Fournaise (La Réunion Island), or Kilauea (Hawaii)
The aim of this paper is to present our study of the eruptive activity occurred at Stromboli between 28 March and 1 April 2020, along with our interpretation and quantification of the eruptive processes that are based on the analysis of monitoring data, comprising time-lapse videos recorded by the camera network, satellite images, GBInSAR, and seismic stations
The description of the events, the calculation of velocity for lava flows and pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) spreading along the Sciara del Fuoco (SdF) and on the sea surface, and the count of the explosions occurring over time from the summit craters were obtained through the analysis of the videos recorded by the network of fixed monitoring cameras maintained by INGV-OE (Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia—Osservatorio Etneo)
Summary
Rapid changes of the surface morphology often occur in open-conduit basaltic volcanoes that frequently erupt, such as Etna and Stromboli (Italy), Piton de la Fournaise (La Réunion Island), or Kilauea (Hawaii). Cinder-cones ~60 m high can form in just one or a few weeks [1,2], large lava flows can spread over roads or villages [3,4,5,6], and summit collapses following major lava withdrawal can involve large areas and result in new calderas [6,7,8,9]. Regardless of the cause, instability as well as the formation of pyroclastic density currents (PDC) at active and inhabited volcanoes can cause injuries and even loss of lives This happened, for example, at Stromboli in 1930 and 2019 [22,23,24,25], at Unzen (Japan) in 1991 [26], at Merapi (Java) in 1994 and 2010 [27]. PDCs are identified among the primary sources of fatalities at active volcanoes [28]
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