Formation Of Collapse Calderas Research Articles

Reconciling mechanical models of caldera ring-fault nucleation within the transcrustal magmatic system paradigm

The formation of a collapse caldera requires the nucleation of circumferential ring-faults that connect an underlying magma chamber with the Earth's surface. The roof of the magma chamber collapses as a consequence of magma withdrawal due to either over- or under-pressure within the chamber. Recent inferences have suggested that calderas may form atop complex transcrustal magma systems with several individual or interconnected magma chambers residing at depth throughout the crust. Whilst there have been several attempts to define the mechanical conditions leading to caldera fault nucleation, the assumptions for these models often rely on a single shallow magma chamber or the combination of a single shallow magma chamber with doming of a deep-seated magma reservoir. There have, so far, been no attempts to reconcile the mechanical conditions leading to ring-fault nucleation and potential collapse caldera formation with inferred geometries and arrangements of complex transcrustal magmatic systems. Here we address this issue using Finite Element Method (FEM) to reconcile mechanical conditions for caldera ring-fault nucleation within the transcrustal magma system paradigm by modeling multiple magma pocket arrangements. Out of the 150 distinct combinations of shallow magma chambers and pressure conditions that were tested, only 15% yielded the necessary conditions for the successful formation of a caldera ring-fault, supporting the need for special or very specific conditions for the occurrence of calderas in nature. Results show that relatively small lateral distances in the position between magma chambers inhibit the stress conditions required for caldera fault nucleation and propagation. Changes in the vertical spacing between stacked magma chambers do not significantly alter the distribution of either tensile or shear stress. This implies that the specified criteria for initiating ring-faults are consistently met, regardless of the number or arrangement of magma chambers. However, vertical offsets between laterally distributed magma compartments lead to an uneven distribution of shear stress, potentially triggering a trapdoor-type collapse. Consistent with the results presented here, the concept of vertically stacked magma compartments has been proposed as an explanation for both contemporary and ancient volcanic systems.

New late Middle to early Late Ordovician U–Pb zircon ages of extension-related felsic volcanic rocks in the Eastern Pyrenees (NE Iberia): tectonic implications

AbstractPre-Variscan basement rocks from the Pyrenees provide evidence of several magmatic episodes with complex geodynamic histories from late Neoproterozoic to Palaeozoic times. One of the most significant episodes, consisting of several granitic and granodioritic bodies and volcanic rocks, mostly pyroclastic in nature, dates from the Late Ordovician period. In the Eastern Pyrenees, this magmatism is well represented in the Ribes de Freser and Núria areas; here, the Núria orthogneiss and the Ribes granophyre, both dated at c. 457–460 Ma, seem to form a calc-alkaline plutonic suite emplaced at different crustal levels. The presence of numerous pyroclastic deposits and lavas interbedded with Upper Ordovician (Sandbian–lower Katian, formerly Caradoc) sediments, intruded by the Ribes granophyre, suggests that this magmatic episode also generated significant volcanism. Moreover, the area hosts an important volume of rhyolitic ignimbrites and andesitic lavas affected by Alpine deformation. These volcanic rocks were previously attributed to late Variscan volcanism, extensively represented in other areas of the Pyrenees. Here we present the first five laser-ablation U–Pb zircon dates for this ignimbritic succession and two new ages for the Ribes granophyre. The ages of the ignimbrites, overlapping within error, are all 460 Ma, suggesting a genetic relationship between the plutonic and volcanic rocks and indicating that the Sandbian–Katian magmatism is much more voluminous than reported in previous studies, and possibly includes mega-eruptions linked to the formation of collapse calderas.

El Morro caldera (33° 10′ S, 66° 24′ W), San Luis, Argentina: An exceptional case of fossil pre-collapse updoming

Volcanism at Sierra del Morro represents the final stages of the flat-slab related magmatism in the easternmost San Luis Neogene Volcanic Belt. This ~80km-long NW-WNW-trending belt tracks the episodic inland migration of both magmatism and tectonic deformation since ~18Ma. The Sierra del Morro stands out in the Eastern Sierras Pampeanas as a metamorphic block uplifted during the Late Miocene-Pleistocene by a combination of magma injection and tectonic deformation. Although sequences that preserve stages of basement updoming are not often preserved, exposures in Sierra del Morro are exception in providing key evidence and insight into the involved processes. Based on the comprehensive study of volcanic stratigraphy and structures, the reconstruction of the volcanic architecture has been carried out. We infer a three stage evolution of the El Morro caldera as follows: 1) pre-collapse updoming and volcanism, 2) collapse caldera formation and 3) post-caldera volcanism. The ascent of magma is recorded in small tumescence sites, strongly controlled by oblique transtensional WNW-NW and ENE-striking brittle-ductile megashear zones. Even though the area affected by tumescence was large, magma injection progressed only locally. At Cerros Guanaco and Pampa, metamorphic rocks were updomed and strongly brecciated, whereas at Sierra del Morro magma was emplaced as pre-collapse domes with associated block-and-ash flows, ignimbrite caldera-forming eruptions and post-caldera lava domes and dykes. The caldera is located in the intersection of two major oblique transtensional WNW-NW and ENE-trending brittle-ductile megashear zones, where the highest positive dilatation occurred.

Caldera faults capture and deflect inclined sheets: an alternative mechanism of ring dike formation

The subsurface structures of caldera ring faults are often inferred from numerical and analog models as well as from geophysical studies. All of these inferred structures need to be compared with actual ring faults so as to test the model implications. Here, we present field evidence of magma channeling into a caldera ring fault as exhibited at Hafnarfjall, a deeply eroded and well-exposed 5-Ma extinct volcano in western Iceland. At the time of collapse caldera formation, over 200 m of vertical displacement was accommodated along a ring fault, which is exceptionally well exposed at a depth of approximately 1.2 km below the original surface of the volcano. There are abrupt changes in the ring fault attitude with depth, but its overall dip is steeply inward. Several inclined sheets within the caldera became arrested at the ring fault; other sheets became deflected up along the fault to form a multiple ring dike. We present numerical models showing stress fields that encourage sheet deflection into the subvertical ring fault. Our findings provide an alternative mechanical explanation for magma channeling along caldera ring faults, which is a process likely to be fundamental in controlling the location of post-caldera volcanism.

A short review of our current understanding of the development of ring faults during collapse caldera formation

The term collapse caldera refers to those volcanic depressions resulting from the sinking of the chamber roof due to the rapid withdrawal of magma during the course of an eruption. During the last three decades, collapse caldera dynamics has been the focus of attention of numerous, theoretical, numerical and experimental studies. Nonetheless, even if there is a tendency to go for a general and comprehensive caldera dynamics model, some key aspects remain unclear, controversial or completely unsolved. This is the case of ring fault nucleation points and propagation and dip direction. Since direct information on calderas’ deeper structure comes mainly from partially eroded calderas or few witnessed collapses, ring faults layout at depth remains still uncertain. This has generated a strong debate over the detailed internal fault and fracture configuration of a caldera collapse and, in more detail, how ring faults initiate and propagate. We offer here a very short description of the main results obtained by those analogue and theoretical/mathematical models applied to the study of collapse caldera formation. We place special attention on those observations related to the nucleation and propagation of the collapse-controlling ring faults. This summary is relevant to understand the current state-of-the-art of this topic and it should be taken under consideration in future works dealing with collapse caldera dynamics.

On the effect of crustal layering on ring-fault initiation and the formation of collapse calderas

Collapse calderas can be attributed to subsidence of the magma chamber roof along bounding sub-vertical normal faults (ring-faults) after a decompression of the magma chamber. It has previously been shown that for ring-faults to initiate, and thus facilitate collapse, the stress field both at the surface and around the magma chamber must satisfy specific critical conditions. Here, we present new numerical models that use a Finite Element Method to investigate the effects of crustal layering on local stress field distribution. Results are compared with existing criteria for ring-fault initiation. Different subsurface scenarios were simulated by varying the stiffness (Young's modulus) of layers placed above the magma chamber, and the host rock in which the chamber is seated. We consider depressurisation of a magma chamber, so as to simulate magma withdrawal. Results indicate that mechanical layering is a further first-order variable in the rare achievement of stress conditions required for ring-fault formation, and may be influential in facilitating or inhibiting caldera collapse. We show that for a given geometrical set-up, the magnitude and position of maximum tensional stress at the Earth's surface are influenced by the occurrence and relative distribution of mechanically stiff or soft lithologies above the magma chamber. For example, tensional stress at surface may be reduced by the presence of stiff layers (e.g. lavas), or increased by soft layers (e.g. pyroclastic units) compared to generic simulations using a homogeneous background medium. Overall we find that the presence of mechanically soft material promotes surface fracture initiation. In addition we suggest that the position of peak tensional stress at surface derived by the numerical models does not represent that related to the position of the bounding ring-fault, but is instead related to the position of initial tensional fractures appearing prior to the collapse faults.

Stress fields controlling the formation of nested and overlapping calderas: Implications for the understanding of caldera unrest

Commonly, the formation of a collapse caldera does not necessarily imply the end of the volcanic activity in the area. In many cases, successive calderas may form close to the previous collapse depression or intersecting it leading to overlapping collapse structures. Occasionally, subsequent caldera collapses may take place at the interior of the first caldera creating nested collapse structures. During the last years several authors have investigated numerically how the stress field around magma chambers may favour the formation of collapse calderas assuming that the host rock surrounding the magmatic reservoir behaves as a linear elastic homogeneous medium. The numerical models presented in this work study how a caldera collapse may modify the stress field of a volcanic area and hence the conditions for the formation of future collapse calderas. Our models take into account the effect of the collapse structure considering it as a mechanical discontinuity. We also investigate the mechanical influence of the intra- and extra-caldera deposits on the formation of new calderas. All the numerical models are two-dimensional assuming plane strain and considering that the surrounding crust behaves as a linear homogeneous elastic material. The computational domain corresponds to a cross-section of the upper crust (50 × 25 km) and magma chambers are modelled as sill-like cavities located at a certain depth below the Earth's surface. The existing collapse caldera depression is 8 km wide and 2.75 km deep, however we consider the caldera infill (i.e. intra-caldera material) to be 1.25 or 1.75 km thick. We assume as loading conditions an underpressure of 10 MPa imposed at the chamber walls, that is, negative excess pressure in the chamber. In some numerical runs we have considered the existence of a previous ring fault by introducing a thin and elongate vertical weak zone at the caldera margins. We find that the stress field around shallow-level magma chambers favouring the formation of either nested or overlapping caldera structures depend on: 1) the dimensions of the previous caldera collapse structure, 2) the size of the new magma chamber susceptible to generate the subsequent caldera-forming event, and 3) the mechanical properties of the surrounding host rock and the syn- and post-collapse materials. Moreover, results obtained in this paper may be relevant to the interpretation of unrest episodes in active caldera systems. Our numerical results confirm that the formation of multiple calderas (nested, overlapping, or separate) imply the development of new shallow magma chambers different from the one that lead to the first collapse caldera. In consequence, interpretation of magmatic unrest episodes in active collapse calderas should not be based on the assumption that the responsible for the current unrest is the same system that originated the caldera.

Kinematic link between episodic trapdoor collapse of the Negra Muerta Caldera and motion on the Olacapato-El Toro Fault Zone, southern central Andes

A combined geochronological and structural analysis of the Miocene Negra Muerta Caldera was designed to better understand caldera formation associated with prominent faults on the central Andean plateau. Rb–Sr ages of the caldera outflow facies indicate that caldera formation occurred in two volcano-tectonic episodes. The first episode commenced with explosive eruption of the 9.0±0.1 Ma andesitic Acay Ignimbrite followed by a period of volcanic quiescence and moderate tectonic activity. Dominant volcanic and tectonic activity occurred during the second episode, which is bracketed by eruption of the 7.6±0.1 Ma rhyolitic Toba 1 Ignimbrite and effusive discharge of the 7.3±0.1 Ma rhyodacitic to andesitic lava flows. Structural relationships between rocks of the Negra Muerta Volcanic Complex and collapse-induced normal faults, notably NE-striking normal faults, agree with simultaneous volcanic activity and floor subsidence of the caldera during the second episode. Floor subsidence was achieved by tilting on an outward dipping reverse fault to the northwest of the caldera floor around a hinge zone located south of the caldera floor. This induced horizontal extension of the caldera floor and was accomplished by fragmentation of, and intrusion of dikes into, the floor. Collapse-induced and post-collapse fault populations of the caldera do not differ significantly in the directions of their axes of maximum extension and are in this respect kinematically compatible with left-lateral slip on the nearby Olacapato-El Toro Fault Zone. This furnishes evidence for a kinematic control by prominent faults on the formation of collapse calderas in the central Andes. The structural analysis of the Negra Muerta Caldera shows that collapse calderas can serve as deformation markers that contribute in elucidating the regional kinematic regime and the time of activity of prominent dislocations genetically related to collapse calderas.

Magma intrusion and discharge process at the initial stage of the 2000 activity of Miyakejima, Central Japan, inferred from tilt and GPS data

SUMMARY The 2000 eruptive activity of Miyakejima island began with an earthquake swarm and crustal deformation that was clearly observed by continuous observations of ground tilt and GPS on Miyakejima. Based on the crustal deformation data, we estimated the magma migration process at the initial stage (18:30 LT on 2000 June 26—06:00 LT on 2000 June 27) of the activity. The activity in 2000 has been characterized by a collapse-caldera formation and no fissure eruption on the flank of the island, which is markedly different from the style of the recent eruptions in 1940, 1962 and 1983. We constructed a source model that approximately explains the crustal deformation data. The model consists of four dykes, of which three are intruding dykes and the other is a contracting dyke. We can infer the magma migration process at the initial stage from the model as follows. At 18:30 LT on June 26, the magma began to ascend from a dyke-shaped magma chamber and intrude at the southwestern flank of Miyakejima. In the intrusion, the total volume of intruded magma was ∼4 × 10 6 m 3 .A taround 21:00 LT, a relatively large volume of magma began to intrude as a dyke beneath the west coast of Miyakejima. The dyke then propagated laterally towards the northwest. The amount of magma intruded from 21:00 LT to 01:00 LT was ∼40 × 10 6 m 3 . This large intrusion caused a discharge of magma from the magma chamber. The northwestward propagation of the dyke and the contraction of the chamber continued thereafter. The discharge of magma from the chamber beneath Miyakejima probably starved the first intrusion that had been ascending towards the southwestern flank of the island, resulting in the collapse-caldera formation after the initial stage. The style of the 2000 eruptive activity relative to recent activity has primarily been changed by the subsurface discharge of magma towards the northwest.

Effect of stress fields on magma chamber stability and the formation of collapse calderas

The summits of many of the Earth’s and other planets’ larger volcanoes are occupied by calderas that formed by collapse into an evacuating, underlying magma chamber. These collapse calderas are typically several tens of square kilometers in area and are commonly elliptical in shape. We show that the long axes of late Quaternary collapse calderas in the Kenya rift valley, the western Basin and Range province, the Snake River‐Yellowstone Plateau, and the Iceland rift zone are parallel to the upper crustal minimum horizontal stress direction (Sh) as determined by independent criteria. We suggest that circular magma chambers beneath these volcanoes became elliptical by stress‐induced spalling of their chamber walls, by a mechanism that is analogous to the formation of breakouts in boreholes and tunnels. In breakouts, the hole becomes elongate parallel to the far‐field minimum stress. In the Kenya rift, Late Pleistocene caldera collapse was accompanied by a 45° rotation of Sh and an increase in the magnitude of the maximum horizontal stress (SH). The breakout model predicts increasingly unstable caldera walls under these conditions, a possible explanation for the sudden appearance of so many collapse events in a volcanic setting that had never experienced them before. This mechanism of stress change‐induced collapse may have played a role in other caldera settings.

Late Cenozoic tectonism, collapse caldera and plateau formation in the central Andes

The evolution of Andean volcanism including the formation of late Miocene to Recent collapse calderas on the Puna plateau is generally interpreted in terms of the kinematic framework of the Nazca and South American Plates. We present evidence that caldera dynamics and associated ignimbrite volcanism are genetically linked to the activity of first-order NW–SE-striking zones of left-lateral transtension on the local and regional scales. Consequently, ages of collapse calderas indicate activity of these fault zones which initiated at about 10 Ma on the Puna plateau. The onset of such faulting points to a change in the deformation regime from dominantly vertical thickening to orogen-parallel stretching upon reaching maximum crustal thickness and critical surface elevation. Horizontal magma sheets that formed at mid-crustal level possibly due to heat advection by volume increase of asthenospheric mantle below thickened crust were tapped by sub-vertical faults. This accounts well for the observed tectono-magmatic phenomena at surface. It follows that formation of collapse calderas and eruption of voluminous ignimbrites appear to be related to the mechanical evolution of the Andean plateau rather than to changes in the geometry of the Wadati–Benioff zone or plate boundary kinematics.