Silicic caldera volcanoes are frequently situated in regions of tectonic extension, such as continental rifts, and are subject to periods of unrest and/or eruption that can be triggered by the interplay between magmatic and tectonic processes. Modern (instrumental) observations of deformation patterns associated with magmatic and tectonic unrest in the lead up to eruptive events at silicic calderas are sparse. Therefore, our understanding of the magmatic-tectonic processes associated with volcanic unrest at silicic calderas is largely dependent on historical and geological observations. Here we utilize existing instrumental, historical and geological data to provide an overview of the magmatic-tectonic deformation patterns operating over annual to 104 year timescales at Taupō volcano, now largely submerged beneath Lake Taupō, in the rifted-arc of the Taupō Volcanic Zone. Short-term deformation patterns observed from seismicity, lake level recordings and historical records are characterized by decadal-scale uplift and subsidence with accompanying seismic swarms, ground shaking and surface ruptures, many of which may reflect magma injections into and around the magma reservoir. The decadal-scale frequency at which intense seismic events occur shows that ground shaking, rather than volcanic eruptions, is the primary short-term local hazard in the Taupō District. Deformation trends near and in the caldera on 101–104 yr timescales are atypical of the longer-term behavior of a continental rift, with magma influx within the crust suppressing axial subsidence of the rift basin within ∼10 km of the caldera margin. Examination of exposed faults and fissures reveals that silicic volcanic eruptions from Taupō volcano are characterized by intense syn-eruptive deformation that can occasionally extend up to 50 km outside the caldera structure, including ground shaking, fissuring and triggered fault movements. We conclude that eruption and unrest scenarios at Taupō volcano depend on the three-way coupling between the mafic-silicic-tectonic systems, with eruption and/or unrest events leading to six possible outcomes initially triggered by mafic injection either into or outside the magma mush system, or by changes to the tectonic stress state.
<p>Taup&#333; volcano, in the centre of North Island, Aotearoa New Zealand, is a frequently active rhyolitic caldera volcano that was the site of Earth&#8217;s most recent supereruption (Oruanui ~25 ka)<sup>1,2</sup>. It has erupted 28 times since then, and continues to display signs of unrest (seismicity and surface deformation), with periods of elevated unrest on roughly decadal timescales<sup>3</sup>. Any resumption of eruptive activity at the volcano poses a major source of hazard, and interactions between the magma reservoir and the regional tectonics that lead to unrest and possible eruption are not well understood. The location of the modern magma reservoir has been previously constrained by study of past eruptive products and some geophysical imaging (gravity, broad-scale tomography)<sup>2</sup>. Earthquake patterns during a 2019 unrest episode have also been used to infer the location and size (>~250 km<sup>3</sup>) of the modern-day reservoir<sup>4</sup>, but its location and extent have not yet been directly imaged. As part of the interdisciplinary ECLIPSE project, seismological methods are being used to investigate the Taup&#333; reservoir, combining data from the national GeoNet seismic network with records from a temporary 13 broadband seismometer network. Development of the ECLIPSE network approximately doubles the number of seismic stations within 10 km of the lake shore.</p><p>We present here initial results on the characterisation of the seismicity in the Taup&#333; region. These results include the improvement of earthquake locations with the addition of picks from the ECLIPSE stations and the use of automated machine learning phase picking and association techniques. We also present initial results from the cross correlation of ambient noise between stations in the ECLIPSE network for the use in ambient noise surface wave tomography, with many of the station pairs crossing the region most likely to contain the modern-day magma reservoir.</p><p><sup>1</sup> Wilson CJN J. Volcanol Geotherm Res 112, 133 (2001) <br><sup>2</sup> Barker SJ et al. NZ J Geol Geophys 64, 320 (2021) <br><sup>3</sup> Potter SH et al. Bull Volcanol 77, 78 (2015) <br><sup>4</sup> Illsley&#8208;Kemp F et al. G-cubed 22, e2021GC009803 (2021)</p>
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