Search results for "impact crater"
showing 10 items of 134 documents
Early detection of volcanic hazard by lidar measurement of carbon dioxide
2016
Volcanic gases give information on magmatic processes. In particular, anomalous releases of carbon dioxide precede volcanic eruptions. Up to now, this gas has been measured in volcanic plumes with conventional measurements that imply the severe risks of local sampling and can last many hours. For these reasons and for the great advantages of laser sensing, the thorough development of volcanic lidars has been undertaken at ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development). In fact, lidar profiling allows one to scan remotely volcanic plumes in a fast and continuous way, and with high spatial and temporal resolution. A differential absorption lid…
Rates of carbon dioxide plume degassing from Mount Etna volcano,
2006
We report here on the real-time measurement of CO2 and SO2 concentrations in the near-vent volcanic gas plume of Mount Etna, acquired by the use of a field portable gas analyzer during a series of periodic field surveys on the volcano's summit. During the investigated period (September 2004 to September 2005), the plume CO2/SO2 ratio ranged from 1.9 to 10.8, with contrasting composition for Northeast and Voragine crater plumes. Scaling the above CO2/SO2 ratios by UV spectroscopy determined SO2 emission rates, we estimate CO2 emission rates from the volcano in the range 0.9-67.5 kt d-1 (average, 9 kt d-1). About 2 kt of CO2 were emitted daily on average during quiescent passive degassing, wh…
Volcanic plume monitoring at Mount Etna by diffusive (passive) sampling
2004
[1] This paper reports the use of diffusive tubes in determining HF, HCl, and SO2 in the volcanic plume of Mount Etna in an attempt to highlight the potential of this method in studying volcanoes. In a first application a network of 18 diffusive tubes was installed on Etna's flanks, aimed at evaluating the atmospheric dispersion of the volcanic plume on a local scale. Results showed a monotonic decrease in volatile air concentrations with distance from the craters (HF from 0.15 to <0.003 μmol m−3, HCl from 2 to <0.01 μmol m−3, and SO2 from 11 to 0.04 μmol m−3), revealing the prevalently volcanic contribution. Matching of SO2/HCl and HCl/HF volatile ratios with contemporaneous measurements a…
Sources, size distribution, and downwind grounding of aerosols from Mount Etna
2006
The number concentrations and size distributions of aerosol particles >0.3 mm diameter were measured at the summit of Mount Etna and up to 10 km downwind from the degassing vents during July and August 2004. Aerosol number concentrations reached in excess of 9 106 L1 at summit vents, compared to 4–8 104 L1 in background air. Number concentrations of intermediate size particles were higher in emissions from the Northeast crater compared to other summit crater vents, and chemical composition measurements showed that Northeast crater aerosols contained a higher mineral cation content compared to those from Voragine or Bocca Nuova, attributed to Strombolian or gas puffing activity within the ve…
Spirit Mars Rover Mission to the Columbia Hills, Gusev Crater: Mission overview and selected results from the Cumberland Ridge to Home Plate
2008
This paper summarizes the Spirit rover operations in the Columbia Hills of Gusev Crater from sols 513 to 1476 and provides an overview of selected findings that focus on synergistic use of the Athena Payload and comparisons to orbital data. Results include discovery of outcrops (Voltaire) on Husband Hill that are interpreted to be altered impact melt deposits that incorporated local materials during emplacement. Evidence for extensive volcanic activity and aqueous alteration in the Inner Basin is also detailed, including discovery and characterization of accretionary lapilli and formation of sulfate, silica, and hematite-rich deposits. Use of Spirit's data to understand the range of spectra…
Porous aerosol in degassing plumes of Mt. Etna and Mt. Stromboli
2016
Abstract. Aerosols of the volcanic degassing plumes from Mt. Etna and Mt. Stromboli were probed with in situ instruments on board the Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt research aircraft Falcon during the contrail, volcano, and cirrus experiment CONCERT in September 2011. Aerosol properties were analyzed using angular scattering intensities and particle size distributions simultaneously measured with the Polar Nephelometer and the Forward Scattering Spectrometer probes (FSSP series 100 and 300), respectively. Aerosols of degassing plumes are characterized by low values of the asymmetry parameter (between 0.6 and 0.75); the effective diameter was within the range of 1.5–2.8 µm and the…
Syn- and post-eruptive mechanism of the Alaskan Ukinrek Maars in 1977
2008
The two alkali olivine basaltic Ukinrek Maars (East Maar and West Maar) and one scoria cone within East Maar erupted within eleven days (March 30–April 9, 1977) on the Alaskan Peninsula, 13 km north of Mt. Peulik, an andesite volcano of the Aleutian Range. The East Maar, with a diameter of 300 m, is located within a small graben system striking N 1100 E, oblique to the Aleutian trench in a distance of 350 km. On these tensional faults two eruption centres occur: The East Maar and a scoria cone on the southeastern margin of its crater bottom. The scoria cone was active more or less during the whole eruption activity of East Maar. The West Maar, with a diameter of 140 m, is located just west …
Spectral, mineralogical, and geochemical variations across Home Plate, Gusev Crater, Mars indicate high and low temperature alteration
2009
Over the last ~3 years in Gusev Crater, Mars, the Spirit rover observed coherent variations in color, mineralogy, and geochemistry across Home Plate, an ~80 m-diameter outcrop of basaltic tephra. Observations of Home Plate from orbit and from the summit of Husband Hill reveal clear differences in visible/near-infrared (VNIR) colors between its eastern and western regions that are consistent with mineralogical compositions indicated by Mössbauer spectrometer (MB) and by Miniature Thermal Emission Spectrometer (Mini-TES). Pyroxene and magnetite dominate the east side, while olivine, nanophase Fe oxide (npOx) and glass are more abundant on the western side. Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectromet…
Steam and gas emission rate from La Soufriere volcano, Guadeloupe (Lesser Antilles): Implications for the magmatic supply during degassing unrest
2014
Abstract Since its last magmatic eruption in 1530 AD, La Soufriere andesitic volcano in Guadeloupe has displayed intense hydrothermal activity and six phreatic eruptive crises. Here we report on the first direct quantification of gas plume emissions from its summit vents, which gradually intensified during the past 20 years. Gas fluxes were determined in March 2006 and March 2012 by measuring the horizontal and vertical distributions of volcanic gas concentrations in the air-diluted plume and scaling to the speed of plume transport. Fluxes in 2006 combine real-time measurements of volcanic H2S concentrations and plume parameters with the composition of the hot (108.5 °C) fumarolic fluid at …
Magmatic gas leakage at Mount Etna (Sicily, Italy): Relationships with the volcano-tectonic structures, the hydrological pattern and the eruptive act…
2004
In this paper we provide a review of chemical and isotopic data gathered over the last three decades on Etna volcano's fluid emissions and we present a synthetic framework of their spatial and temporal relationships with the volcano-tectonic structures, groundwater circulation and eruptive activity. We show that the chemistry, intensity and spatial distribution of gas exhalations are strongly controlled by the main volcano-tectonic fault systems. The emission of mantle-derived magmatic volatiles, supplied by deep to shallow degassing of alkali-hawaiitic basalts, persistently occurs through the central conduits, producing a huge volcanic plume. The magmatic derivation of the hot gases is ver…