The dynamics of large silicic systems from satellite remote sensing observations: the intriguing case of Domuyo volcano, Argentina

Abstract

Silicic magmatic systems are the most dangerous volcanoes on Earth, capable of large and catastrophic eruptions, yet their low eruptive frequency makes it challenging to interpret their short-term unrest. Here we present a decade-plus analysis that integrates, for the first time, time series of satellite interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) surface deformation and satellite thermal infrared edifice-scale surface warming at a large silicic system: Domuyo volcano, in Argentina. We find that deformation and warming are highly correlated, and depending on the sign and lag between the time series, either shallow sealing or magma influx could drive Domuyo’s ongoing inflation (~ 0.15 m/year; from an InSAR-derived tabular source, ~ 11 × 8 × 1 km; ~ 6.5 km depth; ~ 0.037 km 3 /year volume-change rate) and warming (0.3–0.4 °C/year). This study shows the potential that combined satellite surface deformation and edifice-scale surface warming time series have on assessing the physical mechanisms of silicic volcanic systems and for constraining deterministic models.

Unrest at the Laguna del Maule volcanic field 2005–2020: renewed acceleration of deformation

“…The high recharge rate at LdM is comparable to the volume change rate modeled during the ongoing unrest at Domuyo volcano (Lundgren et al 2020), a silicic volcanic center ∼50 km to the SE of LdM. In their statistical study of caldera unrest, Sandri et al (2017) show that the majority of pre-eruptive unrest lasts less than 18 months and display high rates of seismicity and degassing.…”

“…It has been uplifting faster than 200 mm/year since 2007 (Feigl et al 2014;Le Mével et al 2015;Le Mével et al 2016). Episodes of unrest characterized by ground uplift are commonly observed at large silicic caldera systems (Sandri et al 2017), as illustrated by the recent unrest at Domuyo volcano in Argentina (Astort et al 2019;Lundgren et al 2020), Long Valley caldera (Montgomery-Brown et al 2015), and Yellowstone caldera (Chang et al 2010). Episodes of uplift without subsequent eruptions have also been observed at mafic calderas such as Alcedo volcano in the Galapagos (Galetto et al 2019).…”

The 2018 reawakening and eruption dynamics of Steamboat Geyser, the world’s tallest active geyser

“…The method we used is an extension of the method presented in refs. 40 , 71 , and its fundamental components are summarized here.…”

Modeling Magma System Evolution During 2006–2007 Volcanic Unrest of Atka Volcanic Center, Alaska

“…Although these two processes are based on two different theorems, we argue that the inelastic dilatancy of a pre‐existing weak zone at the microscale (i.e., fracture opening and growth) can be approximated by the elastic expansion at the macroscale if the pre‐existing weakness is homogenous within the weak zone. In summary, the correlation between the VT earthquake energy and the fault dilatation suggests that the seismicity in Atka during the unrest was likely triggered by dilatancy‐related “hydrofracturing” processes, similar to the Yellowstone (Chang et al., 2007; Taira et al., 2010; Wicks et al., 2006), Copahue (Lundgren et al., 2017), Laguna del Maule (Zhan et al., 2019), and Domuyo (Lundgren et al., 2020) volcanoes. However, future studies are necessary to understand the details in fracturing processes during volcanic unrest.…”

“…During the volcanic deformation, some parts of the host‐rock may experience dilatancy due to the pressure source, which increases the effective (or connected) porosity of the rock, allowing pore fluid to saturate those dilatant parts. Many examples show that earthquakes can be triggered in areas of positive dilatation, such as Yellowstone (Chang et al., 2007; Taira et al., 2010; Wicks et al., 2006), Copahue (Lundgren et al., 2017), Laguna del Maule (Zhan et al., 2019), and Domuyo (Lundgren et al., 2020) volcanoes.…”