GAC VIP Division

Famous for glowing red #lava & billowing volcanic plumes, #Halemaumau has long inspired poets, painters & photographers to find meaning in color & light of this... dynamic landscape. Today #HVO #scientists are doing this too...in this week's #VolcanoWatch. http://ow.ly/aMjC50CdNtP ----------------- Today, Klauea’s current phase of activity has inspired volcanologists to experiment with cutting edge techniques to understand the dynamic colors and patterns of Halema‘uma‘u’s newest feature: a steaming hot water lake. For fifteen months now, hot groundwater has been seeping into the collapse pit created by the evacuation of the 20082018 Halema‘uma‘u lava lake and part of the underlying summit magma chamber. Since the gaping pit and the water lake rising within are physically inaccessible, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) uses remote techniques to monitor this changing, and potentially hazardous, environment. HVO uses Unoccupied Aircraft Systems (UAS, or ‘drones’) to collect water samples, the chemical analyses of which are snapshots of lake composition. Visual and thermal cameras keep constant watch on the lake surface and the hot fumaroles surrounding it. LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) helps to reveal the lake’s growing form. A Digital Elevation Model (DEM) is integrated with frequent water level measurements to calculate lake depth, volume, and inflow rate. These quantitative data sets are complemented by the written accounts of HVO scientists, who document their first-hand observations in field logs. The lake gives strong impressions of color, pattern, and motion. When it first emerged, it was described as a pond of milky turquoise water. Later, it developed yellow hues and green shoreline margins. Today, the lake surface has lobes of rust orange water over expanses of deep brown, with patches of light brown and tan. Elongated green inflows emerge from the rocky shoreline, along which several ruddy spots have recently upwelled. The water surface is a mosaic in constant motion, a scene that changes by the minute and hour. Sharply defined color boundaries are often seen, accompanied by more subtle gradients and mixing. The patchwork waters may indicate zones of distinct temperature and dissolved constituents, and their movement is likely driven by differentials of density, wind, and fresh groundwater inflow. As HVO scientists documented the lake’s early growth and development, they recognized the need to define these valuable visual observations of color with quantitative measurements, and to help control for variable effects of lighting, personal impressions, and the color biases in cameras. A colorimeter instrument, a handheld optical device that measures chromaticity and brightness, is being field tested for this purpose. A similar type of color measurement was conducted at Aso Volcano in Japan in 2010, inspiring the techniques used by HVO. In an experiment to test its efficacy at Klauea, HVO scientists use a portable colorimeter to quantify visual observations and track color changes over time. Colorimeters are more commonly used in industries like food processing and textile manufacturing than in volcanology. Colorimetry is the measurement of the wavelength and intensity of light. The quantification of color can be divided in two parts. Brightness, or luminicity, is the quantity of light that is reflected, emitted from, or passes through an object. Chromaticity is a measurement of hue and colorfulness, independent of brightness. Colorimetry relates these variables to the human eye’s sensation of color, and to our judgement of the physical stimulus of light. In the field, scientists make broad visual observations, then sight the colorimeter at a point of interest. The record of chromaticity and brightness builds upon hydrologic and geologic data sets, contributing insight that may help link other remote observations. Analysis of the colorimetry data from this experimental technique may help scientists explain the dynamic colors seen at the Halema‘uma‘u lake. Lake color changes may possibly even signal changing volcanic conditions beneath the watery depths. Water color and appearance changes have been observed at other active crater lakes around the world. For example, at Aso Volcano in Japan in 2003, Yudamari lake changed from blue green to solid green before an eruption occurred at the lake bottom. While we don’t know if the water lake within Halema‘uma‘u would have a similar color change prior to an eruption, it is a potential indicator that HVO scientists will be looking for and tracking as part of routine monitoring in the post-2018 collapse era of Klauea activity. Volcano Activity Updates Klauea Volcano is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert level remains at NORMAL (https://www.usgs.gov/nat/volcano-hazards/about-alert-levels). Klauea updates are issued monthly. Klauea monitoring data for the month of October show variable but typical rates of seismicity and ground deformation, low rates of sulfur dioxide emissions, and only minor geologic changes since the end of eruptive activity in September 2018. The water lake at the bottom of Halema‘uma‘u continues to slowly expand and deepen. For the most current information on the lake, see https://www.usgs.gov//kilau/k-lauea-summit-water-resources. Mauna Loa is not erupting and remains at Volcano Alert Level ADVISORY. This alert level does not mean that an eruption is imminent or that progression to eruption from current level of unrest is certain. Mauna Loa updates are issued weekly. This past week, about 42 small-magnitude earthquakes were recorded beneath the upper-elevations of Mauna Loa; most of these occurred at shallow depths of less than 8 kilometers (about 5 miles). Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements show long-term slowly increasing summit inflation, consistent with magma supply to the volcano's shallow storage system. Gas concentrations and fumarole temperatures as measured at both Sulphur Cone and the summit remain stable. Webcams show no changes to the landscape. For more information on current monitoring of Mauna Loa Volcano, see: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mauna-loa/monitoring. There were 3 events with 3 or more felt reports in the Hawaiian Islands during the past week: a M2.6 earthquake 6 km (3 mi) N of Wai‘hinu at 0 km (0 mi) depth on Nov. 3 at 6:40 a.m. HST, a M3.5 earthquake 9 km (5 mi) ENE of Phala at 30 km (18 mi) depth on Nov. 2 at 1:47 a.m. HST, and a M2.9 earthquake 1 km (0 mi) W of Phala at 34 km (21 mi) depth on Oct. 31 at 8:25 a.m. HST. HVO continues to closely monitor both Klauea and Mauna Loa for any signs of increased activity. Please visit HVO’s website for past Volcano Watch articles, Klauea and Mauna Loa updates, volcano photos, maps, recent earthquake info, and more. Email questions to [email protected]. Volcano Watch is a weekly article and activity update written by U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists and affiliates. Contacts Hawaiian Volcano Observatory Email: [email protected] Phone: 808-967-7328

The Kerguelen Plateau in the Indian Ocean is the world's longest continuously erupting supervolcano dating back into the Cretaceous, according to research pub...lished in the journal Geology. This discovery is quite exceptional, considering that these types of eruptions typically last just 1-5 million years See more

Our next GAC-VIP webinar is Thursday Nov. 5th @ 1:30pm EST All Welcome! by Alex Wilson (UBC)... Glacial pumping of a magma-charged lithosphere: the link between ice and volcanoes in the Garibaldi volcanic belt Alex won the VIP Gold Medal for best PhD in 2020 - Congrats again Alex! You can find some of Alex's published work here https://www.eoas.ubc.ca/people/kellyrussell Mark your calendars! Dave Lentz - VIP Prez

This week, all volcanoes in the Cascade Range of Washington and Oregon are at normal background levels of activity. Current Volcano Alert Level: NORMAL Curr...ent Aviation Color Code: GREEN Weekly Update: http://ow.ly/Lsgs50C15FC Recent Observations: Earthquakes were located at Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens over the last week, consistent with normal background seismicity. Field crews were at Mount Rainier this week to install a new monitoring station, and also were at Three Sisters to retrieve campaign GPS receivers deployed in June. In the photo (taken October 1, 2020), CVO geophysicist Rebecca Kramer takes a final look around a newly installed seismic/GPS station at Mount Hood. Data from station LSON is available on the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network webpage, http://ow.ly/bVzf50C15Ji #USGS #CVO #CascadesVolcanoObservatory #VolcanoUpdate #MountHood

This week, #Yellowstone #CalderaChronicles investigates a time when Old Faithful geyser wasn't so faithful... https://www.usgs.gov//a-time-when-old-faithful-wa...sn-t-so-f Natural geysers are rare because they need special conditions to form: a supply of water, recent or active magmatism to supply heat, and the right geometry of fractures in subsurface rocks to permit episodic discharge. Because of the delicate balance between these controlling parameters, geysers have periods of activity and dormancy. Transitions between activity to dormancy and changes in the interval between eruptions are often caused by earthquakes that modify the geometry of fractures in subsurface rocks and by changes in the amount of regional precipitation that flows as groundwater to geyser reservoirs. Many of the world’s geysers are concentrated in Yellowstone’s Upper Geyser Basin, including the most iconic, Old Faithful Geyser. In a journal paper published over 60 years ago, Yellowstone National Park naturalist George Marler described a mineralized wood sample from the mound of Old Faithful Geyser. In one of the first applications of the radiocarbon dating method, that wood was found to be about 730 years old, with an estimated uncertainty of 200 years. Inspired by this observation, a team of scientists collected and studied 13 mineralized wood specimens from the Old Faithful geyser mound, collected under Yellowstone Research Permit YELL-SCI-8030 and published recently in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Three specimens were identified as Lodgepole pine, which currently dominate nearly 80% of the total forested area in Yellowstone National Park. The species of the other samples could not be determined but are probably also remnants of lodgepole pine. The specimens were then split into 41 samples and dated with the radiocarbon method. To the surprise of the researchers, all wood samples had similar ages and implied that lodgepole pine trees grew on the geyser mound in the 13th and 14th centuries (1233-1362 CE). This range of dates is the same (within uncertainty) to the single date that George Marler determined more than six decades ago. Because lodgepole pine trees do not grow on active geyser mounds, the study suggests that when these trees grew on the Old Faithful Geyser mound approximately 650 to 800 years ago, the geyser was not erupting. In the Yellowstone region, past climate reconstructions based on tree ring records reveal that a severe and sustained drought occurred in the mid-13th century, which coincides with the onset of tree growth on the Old Faithful Geyser mound. It would seem, then, that the pause in Old Faithful eruptions during the 13th and 14th centuries was related to diminished precipitation and groundwater supply to the geyser for several decades. The severe 13th century drought had significant effects well beyond Old Faithful Geyser. In fact, severe and persistent droughts impacted large parts of the USA and had a tremendous impact on indigenous peoples, including the Anasazi, Fremont, and Lovelock cultures. It was quite a mystery as to why such old trees were preserved on the geyser mound, because in Yellowstone’s non-thermal areas, lodgepole pines usually decompose completely within 300 years. Wood from the lodgepole pines was preserved for over 650 years on the geyser mound because it was near-continuously wetted by the alkaline, silica-rich thermal waters erupted from geysers. These waters deposit the mineral opal on tree stems and wood tissues which prevents the disintegration of cellulose by fungi, bacteria, and insectsit causes silicification, or mineralization, of the wood! This silicification process can be rapid and take only days or weeks. Because climate models forecast increasingly severe regional droughts by the mid-21st century, results from the new study suggest that geyser eruptions could become less frequent in the future. Indeed, periods of decreased precipitation have been shown in modern times to result in less frequent eruptions of Old Faithful, and the new research indicates that severe, long-duration droughts can terminate eruptions. For now, Old Faithful remains just thatfaithful, with eruptions occurring about every 90 minutes. But this was not always the case in the past, as the new research demonstrates, and might continue to evolve in the future. (Photos: LEFT -- Cross section through a Rocky Mountain juniper deadwood collected in the northern part of Yellowstone National Park under permit YELL-5582. The full length of this sample covers the time period 723-1792 CE. Since climate influences tree growth and the width of annual rings, the relationship between ring widths and recent instrumental climate records (air temperature, precipitation and river discharge) is used to interpret climate variability in the distant past. RIGHT -- Old Faithful in eruption.) Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Shaul Hurwitz, Research Hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey; John King, Tree Ring Scientist at Lone Pine Research; Greg Pederson and Justin Martin, Research Ecologists with the U.S. Geological Survey; David Damby, Research Chemist with the U.S. Geological Survey; Michael Manga, Professor at the University of California, Berkeley; Jeff Hungerford, Yellowstone National Park Geologist; and Sara Peek, Hydrologist at the U.S. Geological Survey.

Volcanoes have played a larger role in changing the climate than previously thought, and their climatic effects may have contributed to past societal and economic change

our next GAC-VIP Zoom webinar is Thursday Oct. 1st, 1:30pm EDT presented by Nelson Eby (UMass) on ""A-type granites: characteristics and petrogenesis" - All Welcome! https://www.uml.edu/sciences/eeas/faculty/eby-nelson.aspx

USGS-Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists are in Klauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone, investigating and documenting vent features, and collecting samples ...for ongoing analyses of 2018 eruption dynamics. Here is the fantastical fissure 21, photographed on September 3. A small hole has formed from collapse of the rampart, and several large collapse blocks and collapse piles surround this part of the fissure. Ramparts are prone to partial collapse after an eruption if the spatter does not weld together when the lava fountains are active. The view of fissure 21 is from the northeast. USGS photo by C. Parcheta. See other photos in #HVO's photo chronology, http://ow.ly/LJXA50BrRia. #USGS #HawaiianVolcanoObservatory #HVO #Kilauea

No major changes were observed at the water lake at the summit of Klauea during a field visit on September 15. The water colors continue to be dominated by tan... and brown hues. The greenish areas appear to be zones of hot water influx at the lake margins. The color boundaries can shift over minutes to tens of minutes. The water level continues to slowly rise. Laser rangefinder measurements indicate that the lake rose approximately 16 feet between June 30 and September 15. A chart showing the slow rise of Summit Water Depth is available on this HVO webpage: http://ow.ly/s44A50BvcIb (scroll down to bottom of monitoring page for data). More photos are in HVO's Photo & Video Chronology http://ow.ly/8t7z50BvcPg. USGS photo taken September 15, 2020 by M. Patrick.

Our next VIP webinar (with MDD) is on Thursday Sept. 17th 1:30pm EDT - All Welcome "Archean volcanic settings: Evaluating VMS prospectivity in the Slave craton" with Michelle DeWolfe (Mt Royal U) ... https://www.mtroyal.ca//Ea/Faculty/ethsci_bio-mdewolfe.htm See you then!