Abstract
Effusive eruptions are explained as the mechanism by which volcanoes restore the equilibrium perturbed by magma rising in a chamber deep in the crust. Seismic, ground deformation and topographic measurements are compared with effusion rate during the 2007 Stromboli eruption, drawing an eruptive scenario that shifts our attention from the interior of the crust to the surface. The eruption is modelled as a gravity-driven drainage of magma stored in the volcanic edifice with a minor contribution of magma supplied at a steady rate from a deep reservoir. Here we show that the discharge rate can be predicted by the contraction of the volcano edifice and that the very-long-period seismicity migrates downwards, tracking the residual volume of magma in the shallow reservoir. Gravity-driven magma discharge dynamics explain the initially high discharge rates observed during eruptive crises and greatly influence our ability to predict the evolution of effusive eruptions.
Highlights
Effusive eruptions are explained as the mechanism by which volcanoes restore the equilibrium perturbed by magma rising in a chamber deep in the crust
Similar to eruptions at other basaltic volcanoes, the effusion rate of the February 2007 eruption of the Stromboli volcano (Aeolian Archipelago, Southern Italy) exhibits a rapid exponential decay characterized by an initial discharge rate of 23 m3 s À 1 that rapidly dropped to B3 m3 s À 1 within a few days[4,5,6,7]
We show that the effusion rate can be measured by ground deformation, which coincides with the contraction of the volcano, and that the magma level within the conduit can be successfully tracked by the lowering of the very-long-period (VLP) seismicity during the effusive event, presenting a useful method for monitoring the real-time evolution of effusive volcanic eruptions
Summary
Effusive eruptions are explained as the mechanism by which volcanoes restore the equilibrium perturbed by magma rising in a chamber deep in the crust. We show that the effusion rate can be measured by ground deformation, which coincides with the contraction of the volcano, and that the magma level within the conduit can be successfully tracked by the lowering of the very-long-period (VLP) seismicity during the effusive event, presenting a useful method for monitoring the real-time evolution of effusive volcanic eruptions.
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