Fracturing and tectonic stress drive ultrarapid magma flow into dikes

Sigmundsson, Freysteinn; Parks, Michelle; Geirsson, Halldór; Hooper, Andrew; Drouin, Vincent; Vogfjörd, Kristín S.; Ófeigsson, Benedikt G.; Greiner, Sonja H. M.; Yang, Yilin; Lanzi, Chiara; De Pascale, Gregory P.; Jónsdóttir, Kristín; Hreinsdóttir, Sigrún; Tolpekin, Valentyn; Friðriksdóttir, Hildur María; Einarsson, Páll; Barsotti, Sara

doi:10.1126/science.adn2838

Cited by 10 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 59 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The latest magmatic period in the RP occurred ∼800 years ago (Saemundsson et al, 2020), but knowledge about sulfur outputs during those eruptions has been lacking thus far. Each volcanic system on the RP tends to activate during individual magmatic periods (Saemundsson et al, 2020), and the recent 2021-2024 Fagradalsfjall and Svartsengi eruptions (Barsotti et al, 2023;Sigmundsson et al, 2024) suggest the potential initiation of a new eruptive period in an area that hosts ∼70 % of the Icelandic population. Consequently, there is an increased societal need for a deeper understanding of sulfur emissions across the RP, which is crucial for a comprehensive assessment of sulfur's impact during future eruptions and its potential consequences for human health.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Medieval and recent SO2 budgets in the Reykjanes Peninsula: implication for future hazard

Caracciolo,

Bali,

Ranta

et al. 2024

Geochem. Persp. Let.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Exposure to volcanic SO 2 can have adverse effects on human health, with severe respiratory disorders documented on short-and long-term timescales. Here, we use melt inclusion and groundmass glass data to calculate potential syneruptive SO 2 emissions during medieval and recent (2021-2024) eruptions across the Reykjanes Peninsula, the most populated area of Iceland, which has recently undergone magmatic reactivation with the 2021-2024 eruptions at Fagradalsfjall and Svartsengi. We target 16 individual eruptions from the medieval volcanic cycle at the Reykjanes Peninsula, the 800-1240 AD Fires, along with the 2021-2023 Fagradalsfjall eruptions and the 2023-2024 eruptions at Sundhnúksgígar. We calculate potential SO 2 emissions across the RP for the individual eruptions to be in the range of 0.004-6.3 Mt. These estimates correspond to mean daily SO 2 emissions in the range of 1000-111,000 t/day, higher than the mean SO 2 measurements of 5240 ± 2700 t/day during the 2021 Fagradalsfjall eruption. By using pre-eruptive sulfur values preserved in undegassed melt inclusions, we develop an empirical approach to calculate best-and worst-case potential SO 2 emission scenarios of any past or ongoing Reykjanes Peninsula eruption of known effusion rate. We conclude that the potential sulfur emissions across the RP can be significantly higher than observed during the 2021 Fagradalsfjall eruption, mainly because of the more evolved nature and higher sulfur contents of magmas erupted during the medieval period. Based on dominant NW wind directions on the Reykjanes Peninsula, eruptions in Brennisteinsfjöll pose the greatest health hazard to the capital area. Sulfate aerosol produced during long-term eruptions may impact visibility and air quality in the Keflavík Airport area. Our findings enable assessment of SO 2 emission scenarios of future eruptions across the RP and can be used together with gas dispersal models to forecast SO 2 pollution at ground level, and its impact on human health.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Medieval and recent SO2 budgets in the Reykjanes Peninsula: implication for future hazard

Caracciolo,

Bali,

Ranta

et al. 2024

Geochem. Persp. Let.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In late October 2023 rapid uplift commenced, centered NW of Mt. Thorbjörn (Figure 1), in similar region as previous uplift episodes, however at a slightly faster rate (Sigmundsson et al, 2024). This uplift rate raised concerns and a dense network of GNSS stations was installed (Figure 1).…”

Section: Gnss Datamentioning

confidence: 68%

“…In the next 2 weeks, seismicity alternated between different NNE-SSW and N-S segments with several periods of increased activity and events up to M L 4. Detectable uplift near Svartsengi, commenced on 27 October (Sigmundsson et al, 2024). The seismicity culminated on 9 November by a short-lasting burst of events reaching M L 5 followed by a one-day period of quiescence with a very low event rate and <M L 2.5 (Figure 2b).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The ongoing tectonic and volcanic unrest (since 2019) was marked by intense seismicity (Björnsson et al, 2020;Fischer et al, 2022;Hrubcová et al, 2021) and local surface deformation (Cubuk-Sabuncu et al, 2021;Ducrocq et al, 2024;Sigmundsson et al, 2022). As of June 2024, eight eruptions occurred (Bindeman et al, 2022;Eibl et al, 2023;Halldórsson et al, 2022;Sigmundsson et al, 2024; this study) with four of them occurring (i.e., 28 December 2023, and on 14 January, 8 February, and 16 March, 2024) along the 8.3 km-long Sundhnúkur cone row that last erupted at 2.4 ka, immediately north of the town of Grindavík (Jeness & Clifton 2009; Figure 1). The RVB is characterized by Pleistocene and Holocene extrusive volcanic rocks (e.g., J.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

On the Move: 2023 Observations on Real Time Graben Formation, Grindavík, Iceland

De Pascale,

Fischer,

Moreland

et al. 2024

Geophysical Research Letters

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Grabens, or valleys formed during extensional tectonic events, are common but rarely observed during formation. In November 2023, inelastic surface deformation formed abruptly along Iceland's plate boundary in Grindavík. We documented graben formation in real‐time through satellite mapping (InSAR), seismicity, GNSS data, repeated lidar surveys, and field mapping. Five normal faults and ∼12 fissures ruptured the surface delineating two grabens separated by a horst, a context not present in other contemporary case studies. The graben normal faults slipped rapidly (over hours) and maximum surface motions coincided with the occurrence of turbulent seismic swarms in both space and time. Although 3 eruptions took place ∼15 km northeast of Grindavík from 2021 to 2023, attributed to magma intrusions (i.e., dikes), none of these also formed grabens. Thus, the Grindavík grabens shows evidence for tectonic origins. Real‐time monitoring of these phenomena provide insight into graben formation on Earth and potentially on other planets.

show abstract

“…In such cases, rapid assessment is demanded for early warning and/or forecast applications aimed at protecting people and assets. New generation of SAR missions promise to be a game changer due to the massive technological improvement introduced, reducing the cost of production and the size of satellites and sensors, thus allowing for the space missions based on fleets and thus providing a more frequent revisit (Łukosz et al, 2021;Sigmundsson et al, 2024). In this work, we show the results of a pilot study performed during the crisis associated with the acceleration of the Brienz/Brinzauls slope instability (hereinafter referred to as Brienz), located in the Swiss alps, culminating on June 15, 2023 with the failure of 1.2 Mm 3 slope portion named "the Island" (Loew, 2023).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Brief Communication: Monitoring slope acceleration and impending failure with very high spatial and temporal resolution space borne Synthetic Aperture Radars

Manconi,

Bühler,

Stoffel

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. We demonstrate how high spatial and temporal resolution spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery can be applied to improve slope deformation monitoring. We process ICEYE data acquired over the Brienz/Brinzauls slope instability in the Swiss Alps, where a catastrophic failure occurred on June 15th, 2023. The available images provided unprecedented viewing of the moving slope from satellite SAR, with revisit times ranging from less than 1 hour to a maximum of 4 days. We apply image correlation algorithms (i.e., pixel-offset analysis) on SAR backscattering to measure surface velocity before the failure event and compared the results against ground-based SAR data used for early-warning purposes. We also compare pre- and post-failure imagery to map areas invaded by debris and to compute volumetric changes associated with the down wasted materials, showing good agreement with digital surface models generated from photogrammetric drone flights. Our results demonstrate how weather independent, high resolution satellite SAR data can provide data in critical scenarios of slope deformation, suggesting that crucial information can be retrieved timely also in remote, poorly accessible regions where in-situ monitoring is not viable.

show abstract

Fracturing and tectonic stress drive ultrarapid magma flow into dikes

Cited by 10 publications

References 59 publications

Medieval and recent SO2 budgets in the Reykjanes Peninsula: implication for future hazard

Medieval and recent SO2 budgets in the Reykjanes Peninsula: implication for future hazard

On the Move: 2023 Observations on Real Time Graben Formation, Grindavík, Iceland

Brief Communication: Monitoring slope acceleration and impending failure with very high spatial and temporal resolution space borne Synthetic Aperture Radars

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About