Three-Dimensional Gravity Modelling of a Trinidad Mud Volcano, West Indies

Abstract

The violent eruption of the Piparo mud volcano, Trinidad, in February 1997 demonstrated its destructive capability by completely burying 16 houses and a number of livestock under a 5 m thick mud pile. Unlike magmatic volcanoes, mud volcanoes involve very low energy, making geophysical methods such as seismology unsuitable for monitoring. Three-dimensional gravity modelling over the Tabaquite mud volcano suggests the presence of a large density contrast (−0.70 t.m-3). The density contrast being large and dynamic (i.e., it is absent at recently active mud volcanoes like Piparo) makes the gravity method a potential tool for monitoring mud volcanoes.