Seismic activity that accompanied the effusive and explosive eruptions during the 2004–2005 period at Volcán de Colima, Mexico

Arámbula‐Mendoza, Raúl; Lesage, Philippe; Valdés‐González, C.; Varley, Nick; Reyes‐Dávila, Gabriel; Navarro, Carlos

doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2011.02.009

Cited by 46 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“…The pre-explosive seismic activity was observed at the nearest seismic station (EZV4), located at 1.5 km from the summit (Figures 1, 2). A similar type of seismicity has previously been observed at Volcán de Colima (Arámbula-Mendoza et al, 2011) and is possibly related to fluid movement and rock fracturing in the conduit (Bean et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 77%

Satellite radar data reveal short-term pre-explosive displacements and a complex conduit system at VolcÃ¡n de Colima, Mexico

et al. 2014

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The geometry of the volcanic conduit is a main parameter controlling the dynamics and the style of volcanic eruptions and their precursors, but also one of the main unknowns. Pre-eruptive signals that originate in the upper conduit region include seismicity and deformation of different types and scales. However, the locality of the source of these signals and thus the conduit geometry often remain unconstrained at steep sloped and explosive volcanoes due to the sparse instrumental coverage in the summit region and difficult access. Here we infer the shallow conduit system geometry of Volcán de Colima, Mexico, based on ground displacements detected in high resolution satellite radar data up to 7 h prior to an explosion in January 2013. We use Boundary Element Method modeling to reproduce the data synthetically and constrain the parameters of the deformation source, in combination with an analysis of photographs of the summit. We favor a two-source model, indicative of distinct regions of pressurization at very shallow levels. The horizontal location of the upper pressurization source coincides with that of post-explosive extrusion. The pattern and degree of deformation reverses again during the eruption; we therefore attribute the displacements to transient (elastic) pre-explosive pressurization of the conduit system. Our results highlight the geometrical complexity of shallow conduit systems at explosive volcanoes and its effect on the distribution of pre-eruptive deformation signals. An apparent absence of such signals at many explosive volcanoes may relate to its small temporal and spatial extent, partly controlled by upper conduit structures. Modern satellite radar instruments allow observations at high spatial and temporal resolution that may be the key for detecting and improving our understanding of the generation of precursors at explosive volcanoes.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 77%

Satellite radar data reveal short-term pre-explosive displacements and a complex conduit system at VolcÃ¡n de Colima, Mexico

et al. 2014

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“…Little diffuse outgassing has been recorded on the flanks, and the absence of a developed hydrothermal system has led to the inference of an impervious layer above the magma chamber (Varley and Taran, 2003). Recently, the eruptive period from November 1998 to June 2011 was characterized by episodic dome growth, lava flows and explosive events that waxed and waned (Zobin et al, 2002;Savov et al, 2008;Varley et al, 2010;Arámbula-Mendoza et al, 2011;Lavallée et al, 2012;Lamb et al, 2014). During this period, large Vulcanian events (column height > 5 km) occurred sporadically, with associated column collapses and pyroclastic flows (Gavilanes-Ruiz et al, 2009).…”

Section: Historic Activity At Volcán De Colimamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Hence, it may be viewed that fragmentation increases degassing efficiency in silicic systems (Watts et al, 2002;Castro et al, 2014;Lavallée et al, 2015), and furthermore, relic fragmentation structures have been proposed as pathways that also allow passive bleeding of gases (Gonnermann and Manga, 2003;Castro et al, 2012;Burgisser and Degruyter, 2015) that may lower the explosive potential of an ongoing eruption. In addition, fragmentation has been linked to characteristic seismicity which occurs at shallow depth during magma migration (Neuberg, 2000;Green and Neuberg, 2006;Neuberg et al, 2006;SahetapyEngel et al, 2008;Palo et al, 2009;Varley et al, 2010;Arámbula-Mendoza et al, 2011;Thomas and Neuberg, 2012;Chouet and Matoza, 2013;Lamb et al, 2014;Webb et al, 2014;Arciniega−Ceballos et al, 2015). This seismicity can inform us of the timing of fragmentation events (e.g., Chouet, 1996), but when used in combination with field observations, can also provide information regarding subsurface processes and mechanisms that lead to fragmentation (e.g., Neuberg et al, 2006;Kendrick et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blowing Off Steam: Tuffisite Formation As a Regulator for Lava Dome Eruptions

et al. 2016

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Tuffisites are veins of variably sintered, pyroclastic particles that form in conduits and lava domes as a result of localized fragmentation events during gas-and-ash explosions. Those observed in-situ on the active 2012 lava dome of Volcán de Colima range from voids with intra-clasts showing little movement and interpreted to be failure-nuclei, to sub-parallel lenses of sintered granular aggregate interpreted as fragmentation horizons, through to infilled fractures with evidence of viscous remobilization. All tuffisites show evidence of sintering. Further examination of the complex fracture-and-channel patterns reveals viscous backfill by surrounding magma, suggesting that lava fragmentation was followed by stress relaxation and continued viscous deformation as the tuffisites formed. The natural tuffisites are more permeable than the host andesite, and have a wide range of porosity and permeability compared to a narrower window for the host rock, and gaging from their significant distribution across the dome, we posit that the tuffisite veins may act as important outgassing pathways. To investigate tuffisite formation we crushed and sieved andesite from the lava dome and sintered it at magmatic temperatures for different times. We then assessed the healing and sealing ability by measuring porosity and permeability, showing that sintering reduces both over time. During sintering the porosity-permeability reduction occurs due to the formation of viscous necks between adjacent grains, a process described by the neck-formation model of Frenkel (1945). This process leads the granular starting material to a porosity-permeability regime anticipated for effusive lavas, and which describes the natural host lava as well as the most impervious of natural tuffisites. This suggests that tuffisite formation at Volcán de Colima constructed a permeable network that enabled gas to bleed passively from the magma. We postulate that this progressively reduced the lava dome's ability to seal and build pressure that drives explosions. Indeed, the time interval between explosions during 2007-2011 gradually increased before the onset of a period of quiescence starting in June 2011. We suggest that the permeability evolution during tuffisite formation has important consequences for modeling of gas-and-ash explosions, common at dome-forming volcanoes.

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“…In a seismic signal study carried out at Volcán de Colima by Arámbula-Mendoza et al (2011) the 2004-2005 period of large eruptive activity was investigated, during which rockfall signals always showed a clearly identifiable seismic waveform and had a high frequency range between 1 and 15 Hz.…”

Section: Seismicity At Volcán De Colimamentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantification of magma ascent rate through rockfall monitoring at the growing/collapsing lava dome of Volcán de Colima, Mexico

et al. 2013

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Abstract. The most recent eruptive phase of Volcán de Colima, Mexico, started in 1998 and was characterized by dome growth with a variable effusion rate, interrupted intermittently by explosive eruptions. Between November 2009 and June 2011, activity at the dome was mostly limited to a lobe on the western side where it had previously started overflowing the crater rim, leading to the generation of rockfall events. As a consequence of this, no significant increase in dome volume was perceivable and the rate of magma ascent, a crucial parameter for volcano monitoring and hazard assessment could no longer be quantified via measurements of the dome's dimensions. Here, we present alternative approaches to quantify the magma ascent rate. We estimate the volume of individual rockfalls through the detailed analysis of sets of photographs (before and after individual rockfall events). The relationship between volume and infrared images of the freshly exposed dome surface and the seismic signals related to the rockfall events were then investigated. Larger rockfall events exhibited a correlation between its previously estimated volume and the surface temperature of the freshly exposed dome surface, as well as the mean temperature of rockfall mass distributed over the slope. We showed that for larger events, the volume of the rockfall correlates with the maximum temperature of the newly exposed lava dome as well as a proxy for seismic energy. It was therefore possible to calibrate the seismic signals using the volumes estimated from photographs and the count of rockfalls over a certain period was used to estimate the magma extrusion flux for the period investigated. Over the course of the measurement period, significant changes were observed in number of rockfalls, rockfall volume and hence averaged extrusion rate. The extrusion rate was not constant: it increased from 0.008 ± 0.003 to 0.02 ± 0.007 m 3 s −1 during 2010 and dropped down to 0.008 ± 0.003 m 3 s −1 again in March 2011. In June 2011, magma extrusion had come to a halt. The methodology presented represents a reliable tool to constrain the growth rate of domes that are repeatedly affected by partial collapses. There is a good correlation between thermal and seismic energies and rockfall volume. Thus it is possible to calibrate the seismic records associated with the rockfalls (a continuous monitoring tool) to improve volcano monitoring at volcanoes with active dome growth.

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Seismic activity that accompanied the effusive and explosive eruptions during the 2004–2005 period at Volcán de Colima, Mexico

Cited by 46 publications

References 85 publications

Satellite radar data reveal short-term pre-explosive displacements and a complex conduit system at VolcÃ¡n de Colima, Mexico

Satellite radar data reveal short-term pre-explosive displacements and a complex conduit system at VolcÃ¡n de Colima, Mexico

Blowing Off Steam: Tuffisite Formation As a Regulator for Lava Dome Eruptions

Quantification of magma ascent rate through rockfall monitoring at the growing/collapsing lava dome of Volcán de Colima, Mexico

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