Deception Island is the most active volcano in the South Shetland Islands and has been the scene of more than twenty identified eruptions over the past two centuries. In this contribution we present the first comprehensive long-term volcanic hazard assessment for this volcanic island. The research is based on the use of probabilistic methods and statistical techniques to estimate volcanic susceptibility, eruption recurrence and the most likely future eruptive scenarios. We perform a statistical analysis of the time series of past eruptions and the spatial extent of their products, including lava flows, fallout, pyroclastic density currents and lahars. The Bayesian event tree statistical method HASSET is applied to calculate eruption recurrence, while the QVAST tool is used in an analysis of past activity to calculate the possibility that new vents will open (volcanic susceptibility). On the basis of these calculations, we identify a number of significant scenarios using the GIS-based VORIS 2.0.1 and
In the southern winter of 1970, a phreatomagmatic eruption occurred in the northern part of Deception Island (South Shetland Archipelago, Antarctic Peninsula). The eruption, with no eye-witnesses to the event, occurred in the same general area as the 1967 eruption, but with new, more widely distributed vents. Two contrasting groups of craters were formed in the 1970 eruption, showing that different active fissures and eruptive dynamics were operating. One group consists of 'maar-like' craters, whereas the other comprises conical edifices. The 1970 eruption can be classified as volcanic explosivity index (VEI) 3, with mainly phreatomagmatic phases that generated a bulk volume of about 0.1 km 3 of pyroclastic material and an eruptive column at least 10 km high, from which fallout deposits are recognized more than 100 km to the NE. The 1970 eruption was similar to that of 1967 and together these two eruptive events show how eruption dynamics can be controlled by the uppermost part of the volcano substrate and the width and orientation of the eruptive fissure. These influence magma-water interaction and hence may imply different eruptive phases and associated volcanic hazards.
The Ilopango caldera is the source of the large Tierra Blanca Joven (TBJ) eruption that occurred about 1.5 ka years ago, between ca. AD270 and AD535. The eruption dispersed volcanic ash over much of the present territory of El Salvador, and pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) extended 40 km from the volcano. In this study, we document the physical characteristics of the deposits from all over El Salvador to further constrain the eruption processes and the intensity and magnitude of the different phases of the eruption. The succession of deposits generated by the TBJ eruption is made of 8 units. The eruption started with PDCs of hydromagmatic origin (Unit A 0 ), followed by fallout deposits (Units A and B) that are b15 cm thick and exposed in sections close to the Ilopango caldera (within 10-15 km). The eruption, then, transitioned into a regime that generated further PDCs (Units C-F), these range from dilute to dense and they filled the depressions near the Ilopango caldera with thicknesses up to 70 m. Deposits from the co-ignimbrite plume (Unit G) are the most widespread, the deposits are found in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and the Pacific Ocean and cm-thick across El Salvador. Modelling of the deposits suggests that column heights were 29 km and 7 km for the first two fallout phases, and that the co-ignimbrite phoenix plume rose up to 49 km. Volumes estimated for the fallout units are 0.15, 0.8 and 16 km 3 dense rock equivalent (DRE) for Unit A, B and G respectively. The PDCs deposits volumes were estimated to be~0.5,~3.3,~0.3 and~9.1 km 3 DRE for Units C, D, E and F, respectively. The combined volume of TBJ deposits is 30 km 3 DRE (~58 km 3 bulk rock), indicating that it was one of largest Holocene eruptions from Central America. This eruption occurred while Mayan populations were living in the region and it would have had a significant impact on the areas within tens of kilometres of the vent for many years to decades after the eruption.
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