Search results for "Volcanic gas"
showing 10 items of 96 documents
Characterisation of the magmatic signature in gas emissions from Turrialba Volcano, Costa Rica
2014
The equilibrium composition of volcanic gases with their magma is often overprinted by interaction with a shallow hydrothermal system. Identifying the magmatic signature of volcanic gases is critical to relate their composition to properties of the magma (temperature, fO2, gas-melt segregation depth). We report measurements of the chemical composition and flux of the major gas species emitted from Turrialba Volcano during March 2013. Measurements were made of two vents in the summit region, one of which opened in 2010 and the other in 2012. We determined an average SO2 flux of 5.2 ± 1.9 kg s-1 using scanning ultraviolet spectroscopy, and molar proportions of H2O, CO2, SO2, HCl, CO and H2 ga…
The crater lake of Ilamatepec (Santa Ana) volcano, El Salvador: insights into lake gas composition and implications for monitoring
2019
We here present the first chemical characterization of the volcanic gas plume issuing from the Santa Ana crater lake, a hyper-acidic crater lake (pH of − 0.2 to 2.5) in north-western El Salvador. Our results, obtained during regular surveys in 2017 and 2018 using a Multi-GAS instrument, demonstrate a hydrous gas composition (H2O/SO2 ratios from 32 to 205) and SO2 as the main sulfur species (H2S/SO2 = 0.03–0.1). We also find that gas composition evolved during our investigated period, with the CO2/SO2 ratio decreasing by one order of magnitude from March 2017 (37.2 ± 9.7) to November 2018 (< 3). This compositional evolution toward more magmatic (SO2-rich) compositions is interpreted in the c…
UVolc: A software platform for measuring volcanic SO2 fluxes
2012
We present here a novel stand-alone software platform, UVolc, for remotely sensed measurement of volcanic SO"2 emission rates. Such data are important diagnostics of activity conditions, with utility in forecasting measures. This code is made user friendly to enable volcanologists, who are not experts in the underlying physics of spectroscopy, to perform their own measurements. The program provides considerable reduction in errors and far greater operating flexibility than existing analogous code, which, unlike UVolc, can only interface with hardware no longer in manufacture. UVolc will be described here, including a presentation of data collected with this program in the field.
First results of the Piton de la Fournaise STRAP 2015 experiment: multidisciplinary tracking of a volcanic gas and aerosol plume
2016
Abstract. The STRAP (Synergie Transdisciplinaire pour Répondre aux Aléas liés aux Panaches volcaniques) campaign was conducted in 2015 to investigate the volcanic plumes of Piton de La Fournaise (La Réunion, France). For the first time, measurements at the local (near the vent) and at the regional scales around the island were conducted. The STRAP 2015 campaign has become possible thanks to a strong cross-disciplinary collaboration between volcanologists and meteorologists. The main observations during four eruptive periods (85 days) are summarized. They include the estimates of SO2, CO2 and H2O emissions, the altitude of the plume at the vent and over different areas of La Réunion Island, …
Understanding volcanoes in the Vanuatu arc
2016
We report the first helium isotope survey of volcanic gases, hot springs and some olivine phenocrysts along the Vanuatu island arc, from Tanna in the south to Vanua Lava in the north. Low CO2 content and low He-3/He-4 ratios in thermal fluids of Epi (4.0 +/- 0.1 R-a), Efate (4.5 +/- 0.1 R-a) and Pentecost (5.3 +/- 0.5 R-a) islands coherently indicate reduced mantle gas leakage and crustal contamination by radiogenic helium on these extinct volcanic systems of the former (Pliocene) arc. Instead, presently active Vanuatu volcanoes display He-3/He-4 and C/He-3 ratios typical of subduction-related volcanic arcs: He-3/He-4 ratios range from 6.4 +/- 0.5 Ra in southernmost Tanna and 7.23 +/- 0.09 …
First in-situ measurements of plume chemistry at mount garet volcano, island of gaua (Vanuatu)
2020
Recent volcanic gas compilations have urged the need to expand in-situ plume measurements to poorly studied, remote volcanic regions. Despite being recognized as one of the main volcanic epicenters on the planet, the Vanuatu arc remains poorly characterized for its subaerial emissions and their chemical imprints. Here, we report on the first plume chemistry data for Mount Garet, on the island of Gaua, one of the few persistent volatile emitters along the Vanuatu arc. Data were collected with a multi-component gas analyzer system (multi-GAS) during a field campaign in December 2018. The average volcanic gas chemistry is characterized by mean molar CO2/SO2, H2O/SO2, H2S/SO2 and H2/SO2 ratios …
The emissions of CO2 and other volatiles from the world’s subaerial volcanoes
2019
AbstractVolcanoes are the main pathway to the surface for volatiles that are stored within the Earth. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is of particular interest because of its potential for climate forcing. Understanding the balance of CO2 that is transferred from the Earth’s surface to the Earth’s interior, hinges on accurate quantification of the long-term emissions of volcanic CO2 to the atmosphere. Here we present an updated evaluation of the world’s volcanic CO2 emissions that takes advantage of recent improvements in satellite-based monitoring of sulfur dioxide, the establishment of ground-based networks for semi-continuous CO2-SO2 gas sensing and a new approach to estimate key volcanic gas param…
. New ground-based lidar enables volcanic CO2 flux measurements
2015
AbstractThere have been substantial advances in the ability to monitor the activity of hazardous volcanoes in recent decades. However, obtaining early warning of eruptions remains challenging, because the patterns and consequences of volcanic unrests are both complex and nonlinear. Measuring volcanic gases has long been a key aspect of volcano monitoring since these mobile fluids should reach the surface long before the magma. There has been considerable progress in methods for remote and in-situ gas sensing, but measuring the flux of volcanic CO2—the most reliable gas precursor to an eruption—has remained a challenge. Here we report on the first direct quantitative measurements of the volc…
Gas hazard assessment at the Monticchio crater lakes of Mt. Vulture, a volcano in Southern Italy
2009
Geochemical investigations have shown that there is a considerable inflow of gas into both crater lakes of Monticchio, Southern Italy. These lakes are located in two maars that formed 140 000 years ago during Mt. Vulture volcanos last eruptive activity. Isotopic analyses suggest that CO2 and helium are of magmatic origin; the latter displays 3 He ⁄ 4 He isotope ratios similar to those measured in olivines of the maar ejecta. In spite of the fact that the amount of dissolved gases in the water is less than that found in Lake Nyos (Cameroon), both the results obtained and the historical reports studied indicate that these crater lakes could be highly hazardous sites, even though they are loca…
High-spectral-resolution Fabry-Pérot interferometers overcome fundamental limitations of present volcanic gas remote sensing techniques
2023
Remote sensing (RS) of volcanic gases has become a central tool for studying volcanic activity. For instance, ultraviolet (UV) skylight spectroscopy with grating spectrographs (GS) enables SO2 (and, under favourable conditions, BrO) quantification in volcanic plumes from autonomous platforms at safe distances. These measurements can serve volcanic monitoring and they cover all stages of volcanic activity in long measurement time series, which substantially contributes to the refinement of theories on volcanic degassing. Infrared (IR) remote sensing techniques are able to measure further volcanic gases (e.g., HF, HCl, CO2, CO). However, the employed Fourier transform spectrometers (FTSs) are…