Abstract
Hydrovolcanism is a type of volcanism where magma and water interact either explosively or non-explosively. The less frequently used term, hydromagmatism, includes all the processes responsible for magma and water interaction in a magmatic system. Hydrovolcanism is commonly used as a synonym for phreatomagmatism. However, in recent years phreatomagmatism appears more in association with volcanic eruptions that occur in shallow subaqueous or terrestrial settings and commonly involves molten fuel-coolant interaction (MFCI) driven processes. Here a revised and reviewed classification scheme is suggested on the basis of the geo-environment in which the magma-water interaction takes place and the explosivity plus mode of energy transfer required to generate kinetic energy to produce pyroclasts. Over the past decade researchers have focused on the role hydrovolcanism/phreatomagmatism plays in the formation of maar craters, the evolution of diatremes and the signatures of magma—water interaction in the geological record. In the past five years, lithofacies-characterization is the most common approach to studying hydrovolcanism. By far mafic monogenetic volcanic fields generated the greatest number of research results. Significant knowledge gaps are identified, especially in developing tools to identify the textural signatures hydrovolcanism leave behind on eruptive products and exploring the role of hydrovolcanism in the growth of intermediate and silicic small volume volcanoes.
Highlights
Historic Perspective and DefinitionsThere is a need to understand the different aspects of explosive volcanic activity associated with the interaction between magma and external water
We propose a nomenclature system for hydrovolcanism that is practical and defines various sub-terms that retain some of the evolution of the term (Figure 1)
Any other cases we suggest using deep water direct explosive hydrovolcanism to all those cases where the explosive eruptions remained fully subaqueous through the entire time of the edifice growth
Summary
There is a need to understand the different aspects of explosive volcanic activity associated with the interaction between magma and external water. Understanding explosive hydrovolcanism is imperative because it occurs with any composition of magma in almost any geotectonic environment from the small-volume eruptions of monogenetic volcanoes to polygenetic volcanoes such as composite cones or caldera-forming eruptions. In caldera-forming eruptions there is evidence that even several tens of km volume of magma might have been fragmented as consequence of magma and water interaction [1,2,3,4]. The first observations of nuclear testing (since 1945 onward) provided an understanding of the transport and depositional processes of explosive hydrovolcanism, whereas further key observations were made during the 1958 Capelinhos, 1963 Surtsey, 1965 Taal and 1977 Ukinrek volcanic eruptions [6,7,8,9,10,11].
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