Monitoring the rates of magma emitted by underwater eruptions in shallow areas.

An article in the journal Remote Sensing of environment highlights innovative work on monitoring rates of magma emitted by underwater eruptions in shallow areas.

 

El Hierro - 03.11.2011 - image of the sea surface of the submarine eruption at the peak - doc.InVolcan / Guardia Civil

A collaboration between INVOLCAN, the University of Las Palmas, the INGV, the University of Ohio and Bionerics Research Company, with the help of the helicopter unit of the Guardia Civil in the Canaries, during the eruption in El Hierro / off La Restingua in 2011-2012, allowed an assessment of the volume of magma emitted during a submarine eruption by the thermal imaging departing an helicopter, method easier to use and cheaper than the bathymetric surveys, and the development of a physical model of heat transfer between the eruptive underwater mouth and the surface of the sea.

From the heat transfer, it was estimated the total volume of magma emitted, 300 million cubic meters. This value is in the range of 10% compared to those obtained by bathymetric surveys carried out by the Instituto spanish Oceanographic (329 million m³).

El Hierro / La Restingua - 06.11.2011 - Thermal image - doc. InVolcan doc / Guardia Civil

El Hierro / La Restingua - 06.11.2011 - photo of the area covered by the thermal image above - InVolcan doc / Guardia Civil

This innovative methodology could be used by other researchers in future underwater eruptions, and help to optimize the management of underwater volcanic crises to come.

Sources :

- Diario de Avisos - Involcan valida una nueva técnica para medir magma de un volcán submarino – link

- Remote Sensing of Environment - Magma emission rates from shallow submarine eruptions using airborne thermal imaging. – by Pedro A. Hernández, Sonia Calvari, Antonio Ramos, Nemesio M. Pérez, Antonio Márquez, Roberto Quevedo, José Barrancos, Eleazar Padrón, Germán D. Padilla, Dina López, Ángel Rodríguez Santana, Gladys V. Melián, Samara Dionis, Fátima Rodríguez, David Calvo, Letizia Spampinato.