Summit Lava Lake Research Articles

Trans-crustal structural control of CO2-rich extensional magmatic systems revealed at Mount Erebus Antarctica

Erebus volcano, Antarctica, with its persistent phonolite lava lake, is a classic example of an evolved, CO2-rich rift volcano. Seismic studies provide limited images of the magmatic system. Here we show using magnetotelluric data that a steep, melt-related conduit of low electrical resistivity originating in the upper mantle undergoes pronounced lateral re-orientation in the deep crust before reaching shallower magmatic storage and the summit lava lake. The lateral turn represents a structural fault-valve controlling episodic flow of magma and CO2 vapour, which replenish and heat the high level phonolite differentiation zone. This magmatic valve lies within an inferred, east-west structural trend forming part of an accommodation zone across the southern termination of the Terror Rift, providing a dilatant magma pathway. Unlike H2O-rich subduction arc volcanoes, CO2-dominated Erebus geophysically shows continuous magmatic structure to shallow crustal depths of < 1 km, as the melt does not experience decompression-related volatile supersaturation and viscous stalling.

Spatio-temporal evolution of the magma plumbing system at Masaya Caldera, Nicaragua

Volcanic unrest in calderas can be exhibited through a variety of different mechanisms, such as changes in seismicity and ground deformation, as well as variations in thermal and/or gas emissions. However, not all caldera unrest results in explosive caldera-forming volcanic activity. Alternative activity may include periods of quiescence, passive degassing, effusive activity (e.g., lava flows lava lakes and dome formation), and/or magma injection into the shallow magma system. In this study, we perform a long-term study (spanning 2011–2019) of ground deformation at Masaya using six Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) datasets. Masaya exhibited bi-modal eruptive behavior between 2011 and 2019, dominated by open-vent lava lake activity and punctuated by short-lived summit explosions. The Multidimensional Small BAseline Subset time-series analysis approach was used to take advantage of the temporally dense SAR datasets. Between 2012 and early 2015, we observed degassing-induced pressurization of the Masaya Central Reservoir (MCR) at an estimated volume change rate of ~ 0.28 $$\times$$ 106 m3/year. In May 2015, magma was supplied into the MCR at a rate of ~ 5.6 $$\times$$ 106 m3/year, leading to the appearance of a summit lava lake in December 2015. Over the next 6 months, rapid magma supply continued to drive lava lake activity and was followed by a cessation of magma supply into the MCR for another 11 months. From mid-2017 to end-2019, we observed depressurization (~ − 0.67 $$\times$$ 106 m3/year) of the MCR due to a lack of magma supply and continued high rates of degassing in-conjunction with declining lava lake activity.

Detecting pre-eruptive magmatic processes of the 2018 eruption at Kilauea, Hawaii volcano with ambient noise interferometry

A sequence of eruptions in the lower East Rift Zone (LERZ) of the Kilauea, Hawaii volcano commenced in early May 2018 and caused serious damage and residential evacuation. The post-eruption drainage and collapses of the summit lava lake and caldera suggest a well-connected magmatic plumbing system along the rift zone. How and when the pre-eruptive magmatic processes in such connecting system occurred are, however, still unclear. For that, we apply ambient noise interferometry with seismic data from January 2017 to June 2018 from 12 broadband seismometers to investigate spatiotemporal seismic velocity changes (dv/v) of the upper crust in the Kilauea area. The dv/v variations in three frequency bands (0.3–0.6 Hz, 0.6–0.9 Hz, and 0.9–2.0 Hz) show distinct responses to strong earthquake ground shaking and deep magmatic intrusion processes. Earthquake-induced dv/v drops mainly in the higher two frequency bands imply shallow mechanical changes within the uppermost 1 km of the crust. In contrast, the magma-related dv/v changes can be characterized into three periods of activity: from the December 2017 to March 15, 2018, a dv/v excursion only seen in the lowest frequency band indicates the magmatic intrusion processes taking place at the depth range of 1–4 km, consistent with the proposed depth of the magma reservoir-dike system in the rift zone. The spatial dv/v distribution suggests that the magma may intrude to the deeper summit magma reservoir and in the upper East Rift Zone (UERZ) at this time. From March 15 to April 17 in 2018, the summit inflation recorded by tiltmeters causes the dv/v increases in the higher two frequency bands. After April 17 to the eruption, the accumulating damage of the edifice together with the stronger intrusion activity in the UERZ result in dv/v decreases in all three frequency bands around the summit and UERZ areas. Our observations highlight that the ambient noise interferometry analysis provides an opportunity to image and understand the pre-eruptive processes of reservoir-dike magma system and could be a useful supplement to current volcanic monitoring systems.

Continuous Gravity and Tilt Reveal Anomalous Pressure and Density Changes Associated With Gas Pistoning Within the Summit Lava Lake of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i

AbstractGas piston events within the summit eruptive vent of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i, are characterized by increases in lava level and by decreases in seismic energy release, spattering, and degassing. During 2010–2011, gas piston events were especially well manifested, with lava level rises of tens of meters over the course of several hours, followed by a sudden drop to preevent levels. The changes in lava level were accompanied by directly proportional changes in gravity, but ground deformation determined from tilt was anticorrelative. The small magnitude of the gravity changes, compared to the large changes in volume within the vent during gas pistons, suggests that pistoning involves the accumulation of a very low‐density (100–200 kg/m3) foam at the top of the lava column. Co‐event ground tilt indicates that rise in lava level is paradoxically associated with deflation (the opposite is usually true), which can be modeled as an increase in the gas content of the magma column between the source reservoir and the surface. Gas pistoning behavior is therefore associated with not only accumulation of a shallow magmatic foam but also more bubbles within the feeder conduit, probably due to the overall decrease in gas emissions from the lava lake during piston events.

Shallowly driven fluctuations in lava lake outgassing (gas pistoning), Kīlauea Volcano

Lava lakes provide ideal venues for directly observing and understanding the nature of outgassing in basaltic magmatic systems. Kīlauea Volcano's summit lava lake has persisted for several years, during which seismic and infrasonic tremor amplitudes have exhibited episodic behavior associated with a rise and fall of the lava surface (“gas pistoning”). Since 2010, the outgassing regime of the lake has been tied to the presence or absence of gas pistoning. During normal behavior (no gas pistoning), the lake is in a “spattering” regime, consisting of higher tremor amplitudes and gas emissions. In comparison, gas piston events are associated with an abrupt rise in lava level (up to 20 m), during which the lake enters a “non-spattering” regime with greatly decreased tremor and gas emissions. We study this episodic behavior using long-term multidisciplinary monitoring of the lake, including seismicity, infrasound, gas emission and geochemistry, and time-lapse camera observations. The non-spattering regime (i.e. rise phase of a gas piston cycle) reflects gas bubbles accumulating near the top of the lake, perhaps as a shallow foam, while spattering regimes represent more efficient decoupling of gas from the lake. We speculate that the gas pistoning might be controlled by time-varying porosity and/or permeability in the upper portions of the lava lake, which may modulate foam formation and collapse. Competing models for gas pistoning, such as deeply sourced gas slugs, or dynamic pressure balances, are not consistent with our observations. Unlike other lava lakes which have cyclic behavior that is thought to be controlled by deeply sourced processes, external to the lake itself, we show an example of lava lake fluctuations driven by cycles of activity at shallow depth and close to the lake's surface. These observations highlight the complex and unsteady nature of outgassing from basaltic magmatic systems.

Lava lake level as a gauge of magma reservoir pressure and eruptive hazard

Forecasting volcanic activity relies fundamentally on tracking magma pressure through the use of proxies, such as ground surface deformation and earthquake rates. Lava lakes at open-vent basaltic volcanoes provide a window into the uppermost magma system for gauging reservoir pressure changes more directly. At Kīlauea Volcano (Hawai‘i, USA) the surface height of the summit lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u Crater fluctuates with surface deformation over short (hours to days) and long (weeks to months) time scales. This correlation implies that the lake behaves as a simple piezometer of the subsurface magma reservoir. Changes in lava level and summit deformation scale with (and shortly precede) changes in eruption rate from Kīlauea’s East Rift Zone, indicating that summit lava level can be used for short-term forecasting of rift zone activity and associated hazards at Kīlauea.

An automated SO2 camera system for continuous, real-time monitoring of gas emissions from Kīlauea Volcano's summit Overlook Crater

SO2 camera systems allow rapid two-dimensional imaging of sulfur dioxide (SO2) emitted from volcanic vents. Here, we describe the development of an SO2 camera system specifically designed for semi-permanent field installation and continuous use. The integration of innovative but largely “off-the-shelf” components allowed us to assemble a robust and highly customizable instrument capable of continuous, long-term deployment at Kīlauea Volcano's summit Overlook Crater. Recorded imagery is telemetered to the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) where a novel automatic retrieval algorithm derives SO2 column densities and emission rates in real-time. Imagery and corresponding emission rates displayed in the HVO operations center and on the internal observatory website provide HVO staff with useful information for assessing the volcano's current activity. The ever-growing archive of continuous imagery and high-resolution emission rates in combination with continuous data from other monitoring techniques provides insight into shallow volcanic processes occurring at the Overlook Crater. An exemplary dataset from September 2013 is discussed in which a variation in the efficiency of shallow circulation and convection, the processes that transport volatile-rich magma to the surface of the summit lava lake, appears to have caused two distinctly different phases of lake activity and degassing. This first successful deployment of an SO2 camera for continuous, real-time volcano monitoring shows how this versatile technique might soon be adapted and applied to monitor SO2 degassing at other volcanoes around the world.

Magma storage, transport and degassing during the 2008–10 summit eruption at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i

The 2008–current summit eruption at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i offers a unique opportunity to test models of degassing and magma plumbing and to improve our understanding of the volatile budget. The aim of this work was to test the hypothesis that gases emitted from a summit lava lake will be rich in carbon dioxide (CO2) and similar to those measured during the persistent lava lake activity in the early 20th century at Kīlauea Volcano (Gerlach and Graeber, 1985). We measured the sulfur dioxide (SO2) and CO2 concentrations in the gas plume from Halema‘uma‘u using electrochemical and non-dispersive infrared sensors during April 2009. We also analysed olivine-hosted melt inclusions from tephra erupted in 2008 and 2010 for major, trace and volatile elements. The gas and melt data are both consistent with the equilibration of a relatively evolved magma batch at depths of 1.2–2.0km beneath Halema‘uma‘u prior to the current degassing activity. The differences in the volatile concentrations between the melt inclusions and matrix glasses are consistent with the observed gas composition. The degassing of sulfur and halogen gases from the melt requires low pressures and hence we invoke convection to bring the magma close to the surface to degas, before sinking back into the conduit. The fluxes of gases (900 and 80t/d SO2 and CO2 respectively) are used to estimate magma fluxes (1.2–3.4m3/s) to the surface for April 2009. The observation of minimal loss of hydrogen from the melt inclusions implies a rapid rise rate (less than a few hours), which constrains the conduit radius to 1–2m. The inferred conduit radius is much narrower than the lava lake at the surface, implying a flared geometry. The melt inclusion data suggest that there is a progressive decrease in melt volatile concentrations with time during 2008–2010, consistent with convection, degassing and mixing in a closed, or semi-closed magma system. The degassing regime of the current summit lava lake activity is not similar to that observed in the early 20th century; instead the gases are extensively depleted in CO2.

Seismic characteristics of variable convection at Erta ʻAle lava lake, Ethiopia

The active summit lava lake of Erta ʻAle volcano, Ethiopia, offers a unique opportunity to study magma convection. In February 2002, we collected a multiparametric set of seismic, thermal and video data. These data indicate that the lake cycled between periods characterized by low (0.01–0.08 m s − 1 ) and high (0.1–0.4 m s − 1 ) convection rates, typically lasting tens to hundreds of minutes. Three seismometers placed around the active crater recorded continuous tremor with a dominant frequency of 2 Hz, and energy at frequencies from 0.8 to 12 Hz. Here, we characterize the seismic signature of each regime by its spectral content, wavefield polarization, and tremor source location. For both regimes, the wavefield is mostly rectilinear. Azimuths and incidence angles are consistent with P waves originating in one of two locations: the north edge of the active lava lake, or a region 100–150 m ENE of the lava lake. Because both regimes are dominated by a low frequency, rectilinearly polarized wavefield, we investigate the source location using a method that solves for location and isotropic source power by a weighted least-squares amplitude-based inversion of seismic data. We find that tremor source regions are unique to each convective regime, although some location overlap exists when tremor is located in short time windows. Wavefield composition suggests that the convective phases may share a common source process, but their differing locations indicate that either the source region is non-stationary, or a second source skews the location during the high convective phase. Tremor polarization and location suggests that the low-frequency tremor is caused by bubble coalescence and bursting in a conduit whose surface is the lava lake. The higher frequency signal associated with the high convective regime is associated with a scattered, more complex wavefield superimposed on the low-frequency background tremor, caused by bubble bursting and cracking of cooled crust at the lava lake surface.

Combined thermal and seismic analysis of the Villarrica volcano lava lake, Chile

Villarrica volcano, a 2,850 m basaltic-andesite stratocone in southern Chile ((39°25' S-71°42' W), has had an active summit lava lake (30-60 m diameter) since the last eruption in 1984-85. Current activity is characterised by mild strombolian activity, continuous degassing, and periodic larger explosions. Between August-December 1999, Villarrica showed a significant increase in seismic activity. Lava lake activity increased and larger discrete explosions occurred destroying the lava lake crust on, at least, 4 occasions. Since February 1999, radiance data provided by the NOAA GOES 8 satellite via the University of Hawaii hot spot monitoring web-site served, as an additional real time monitoring method of the lava lake. Preliminary GOES data, for the period February-December 1999, have been correlated with seismic RSAM data and visual observations. Correlations exist between these data sets only for the most active periods. At Villarrica, the small dimensional and temporal exposure of the lava lake surface and the narrow crater coupled with a low satellite viewing angle generate a very subtle hot spot signature. Radiance variations can only provide reliable data where adequate constraining ground information exists and viewing conditions are optimal. However, the hot spot tool, once refined is considered a potentially important method of improving the monitoring capabilities.

First recorded eruption of Mount Belinda volcano (Montagu Island), South Sandwich Islands

The MODVOLC satellite monitoring system has revealed the first recorded eruption of Mount Belinda volcano, on Montagu Island in the remote South Sandwich Islands. Here we present some initial qualitative observations gleaned from a collection of satellite imagery covering the eruption, including MODIS, Landsat 7 ETM+, ASTER, and RADARSAT-1 data. MODVOLC thermal alerts indicate that the eruption started sometime between 12 September and 20 October 2001, with low-intensity subaerial explosive activity from the island’s summit peak, Mount Belinda. By January 2002 a small lava flow had been emplaced near the summit, and activity subsequently increased to some of the highest observed levels in August 2002. Observations from passing ships in February and March 2003 provided the first visual confirmation of the eruption. ASTER images obtained in August 2003 show that the eruption at Mount Belinda entered a new phase around this time, with fresh lava effusion into the surrounding icefield. MODIS radiance trends also suggest that the overall activity level increased significantly after July 2003. Thermal anomalies continued to be observed in MODIS imagery in early 2004, indicating a prolonged low-intensity eruption and the likely establishment of a persistent summit lava lake, similar to that observed on neighboring Saunders Island in 2001. Our new observations also indicate that lava lake activity continues on Saunders Island.

Volatile degassing, petrology, and magma dynamics of the Villarrica Lava Lake, Southern Chile

Villarrica is a 2847-m-high, subduction zone stratovolcano located in the southern Chilean Andes (39.5°S). This volcano has been characterized by continuous, open-vent, passive degassing from a summit lava lake, with negligible eruption of magmatic material, from the end of the last eruption in 1985 to the time of writing. The major- and trace-element bulk composition of Villarrica magma (basaltic andesite) has been identical from 1984 to the present. Samples of Villarrica magma from the lava lake contain 33 wt.% plagioclase (An 58–74), 7 wt.% olivine (Fo 75–78), and trace amounts of chromian spinel. Glass inclusions in olivine and plagioclase are basaltic andesite in composition, are mostly degassed, and contain 30–440 ppm S, 170–360 ppm Cl, 340–600 ppm F, 0.1±0.6 wt.% H 2O, and 20–70 ppm CO 2. One gas-rich glass inclusion contains 920 ppm S, 530 ppm Cl, and 1.4 wt.% H 2O. Matrix glasses are basaltic andesite and contain 80–150 ppm S, 190–250 ppm Cl, 440–630 ppm F, and 0.0±0.7 wt.% H 2O. MELTS modeling suggests that all crystallization occurred at P<170 bar, T=1130–1140 °C, f O 2 =NNO under water-saturated conditions. The upper bound for the initial amount of dissolved H 2O in Villarrica melt is unconstrained. In 2001, Villarrica emitted 460±260 tons/day SO 2, 102±42 tons/day HCl, and 13±3 tons/day HF. On average, ∼2.2 m 3/s of magma is degassed (or 5800 kg/s) which implies ∼1.2 km 3 of magma has degassed since 1985. Intrusion of 1.2 km 3 of degassed magma into the volcanic edifice would cause >50 m of vertical deformation, but there is no visible bulging of the edifice or mass wasting of the cone caused by deformation-induced gravitational instability. Instead, convection of magma in a volcanic conduit with ∼5 m diameter is the most likely mechanism for transporting both the volatiles and heat to produce the observed gas emissions and prevent the lava lake from solidifying.

Seismic and acoustic observations at Mount Erebus Volcano, Ross Island, Antarctica, 1994–1998

Volcanic activity at Mount Erebus is dominated by eruptive activity within a phonolitic summit lava lake. Common eruption styles range from passive degassing to Strombolian explosions, which typically occur several times daily, and occasionally in swarms of up to 900 per day. Shallow explosions, although generally the result of steady exsolution of volatiles from depth, can be triggered by surficial input of H2O through mass wasting of rock, snow and ice from the crater walls. Broadband observations of Strombolian explosions document very-long-period (VLP) signals with strong spectral peaks near 20, 12 and 7s, which are polarized in the vertical/radial plane. These signals precede lava lake surface explosions by ∼1.5s, are highly repeatable, and persist for up to 200s. First motions indicate a deflationary source, with any precursory inflation being below the ∼30s passband of our instruments. Particle motions suggest a VLP source residing up to 800m below the lava lake surface; however, this depth could be exaggerated by near-field radial tilt.Seismic and acoustic signals associated with lava lake explosions commonly show evidence for multiple bubble bursts in corresponding complexity features resulting from varying time delays and relative sizes of superimposed bursts. A systematic decrease in seismic/acoustic ratio for smaller surface explosions suggests that either the seismic energy from the smallest, shallowest bubble bursts experiences much greater seismic attenuation than energy arising from larger events which may involve a deeper, less attenuative portion of the magma column, and/or that the shallowest layer is seismically isolated from deeper parts of a stratified magma column, which are not excited by the smallest explosions due to sharp impedance contrasts across distinct layers.Tremor at Erebus is uncommon, with only a few isolated instances identified in five years of monitoring. Some tremor events are nearly monochromatic, and some exhibit numerous gliding harmonic spectral lines.

Oxygen buffering of Kilauea volcanic gases and the oxygen fugacity of Kilauea basalt

Volcanic gases collected during episode 1 of the Puu Oo eruption along the east rift zone of Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii, have uniform C-O-H-S-Cl-F compositions that are sharply depleted in CO 2. The CO 2-poor gases are typical of Type II volcanic gases ( gerlach and Graeber, 1985) and were emitted from evolved magma stored for a prolonged period of time in the east rift zone after releasing CO 2-rich gases during an earlier period of temporary residence in the summit magma chamber. The samples are remarkably free of contamination by atmospheric gases and meteoric water. Thermodynamic evaluation of the analytical data shows that the episode 1 gases have equilibrium compositions appropriate for temperatures between 935 and 1032°C. Open- and closed-system equilibrium models of species distributions for the episode 1 gases show unequivocally that coexisting lavas buffered the gas oxygen fugacities during cooling. These models indicate that the f O 2 buffering process occurs by transfer of oxygen from the major species in the gas phase (H 2O, CO 2, SO 2) to the lava during cooling and that the transfer of oxygen also controls the fugacities of several minor and trace species (H 2, CO, H 2S, S 2, Cl 2, F 2), in addition to O 2 during cooling. Gas/lava exchanges of other components are apparently insignificant and exert little influence, compared to oxygen exchange, during cooling. Oxygen transfer during cooling is variable, presumably reflecting short-term fluctuations in gas flow rates. Higher flow rates restrict the time available for gas/lava oxygen transfer and result in gases with higher equilibrium temperatures. Lower flow rates favor f O 2 -constrained equilibration by oxygen transfer down to lower temperatures. Thus, the chemical equilibrium preserved in these gases is a heterogeneous equilibrium constrained by oxygen fugacity, and the equilibrium temperatures implied by the compositions of the gases reflect the temperatures at which gas/lava oxygen exchange ceased. This conclusion challenges the common assumption that volcanic gases are released from lava in a state of chemical equilibrium and then continue equilibrating homogeneously with falling temperature until reaction rates are unable to keep pace with cooling. No evidence is found, moreover, that certain gas species are kinetically more responsive and able to equilibrate down to lower temperatures than those of the last gas/lava oxygen exchange. Homogeneous reaction rates in the gas phase are apparently slow compared to the time it took for the gases to move from the last site of gas/lava equilibration to the site of collection. An earlier set of data for higher temperature CO 2-rich Type I volcanic gases, which come from sustained summit lava lake eruptions supplied by magma that experienced substantially shorter periods of crustal storage, shows f O 2 buffering by oxygen transfer up to 1185°C. Oxygen fugacity measurements in drill holes into ponded lava flows suggest that buffering by oxygen transfer may control the f O 2 of residual gases down to several hundred degrees below the solidus in the early stages of cooling. Although the details of the f O 2 buffering mechanisms for oxygen transfer are unknown, the fact that f O 2 buffering is effective from molten to subsolidus conditions suggests that the reaction mechanisms must change with cooling as the reactants change from predominantly melt, to melt plus crystals, to glass plus crystals. Mass balance calculations suggest that redox reactions between the gas and ferrous/ferric iron in the lava are plausible mechanisms for the oxygen transfer and that the f O 2 of the gases is buffered by sliding ferrous/ferric equilibria in the erupting lavas. Contrary to expectations based on models predicting the oxidation of basalt by H 2 and CO escape during crustal storage, CO 2-rich Type I gases and CO 2-poor Type II gases have identical oxygen fugacities despite greatly different crustal storage and degassing histories. Volcanic gas data give a tightly constrained log f O 2 of NNO − 0.5 (±0.05) for subaerially erupted Kilauea basalt from liquidus to solidus temperatures, consistent with recent f O 2 determinations for the mantle source regions of ocean island basalts. Because the oxygen fugacities of volcanic gases emitted by subaerial lavas imply that the f O 2 of Kilauea basalt is unchanged during crustal storage, Kilauea basalt either arrives in the crust with an oxygen fugacity between NNO and FMQ, or it develops an oxygen fugacity in this range immediately upon arrival in the summit chamber.