Satellite-Based Reconstruction of the Volcanic Deposits during the December 2015 Etna Eruption

Abstract

Satellite-derived data, including an estimation of the eruption rate, proximal volcanic deposits and lava flow morphometric parameters (area, maximum length, thickness, and volume) are provided for the eruption that occurred at Mt Etna on 6-8 December 2015. This eruption took place at the New Southeast Crater (NSEC), the youngest of the summit craters of Etna, shortly after a sequence of four violent paroxysmal events took place in 65 h (3-5 December) at "Voragine", the oldest summit crater. Multispectral SEVIRI images at 15 min sampling time have been used to compute time-averaged eruption rate curves, while tri-stereo Pléiades images, at 50 cm spatial resolution, provided the pre-eruptive topography and topographic changes due to volcanic deposits. In addition to the two types of satellite data, other parameters have been inferred, such as probable vesicularity and pyroclastic deposits.

Overflows and Pyroclastic Density Currents in March-April 2020 at Stromboli Volcano Detected by Remote Sensing and Seismic Monitoring Data

“…Indeed, high spatial resolution data acquired in stereo, tri-stereo, or multi-view configuration (e.g., Pléiades, PlanetScope, ASTER) can be used to frequently update the topography and to estimate volcanic deposits by differencing successive topographies. Such estimates can improve the 2D mapping of lava flows while providing an independent maximum bound to lava flow volume that can be derived from the satellite infrared data [59,64,72,73]. We exploited the Pléiades constellation, which is composed of two optical satellites, Pléiades 1A and 1B, respectively, launched on December 2011 and 2012, in order to retrieve areas, volumes, and thickness distribution of the recent volcanic deposits in Stromboli.…”

Spaceborne EO and a Combination of Inverse and Forward Modelling for Monitoring Lava Flow Advance

“…Satellite remote sensing is an established technological solution for bridging critical gaps in volcanic hazard and risk mitigation, as it offers cost effective and global volcano surveillance at a wide range of spatial and temporal resolutions [8][9][10]. It can significantly contribute to operational eruption forecasting and hazard assessment [11][12][13][14][15].…”

The Estimation of Lava Flow Temperatures Using Landsat Night-Time Images: Case Studies from Eruptions of Mt. Etna and Stromboli (Sicily, Italy), Kīlauea (Hawaii Island), and Eyjafjallajökull and Holuhraun (Iceland)

“…Etna. The 2008-2009 eruption was the longest flank eruption after a large 1991-1993 eruption, and the second longest since the seventeenth century [10,42,[60][61][62]. From January 2011 to December 2013, 44 eruptions occurred at the New South East Crater (NSEC), most of them characterized by short-term paroxysmal activity with vigorous lava fountaining accompanying extrusion of rheomorphic lava flows [55,63,64].…”

“…Satellite image data are a cost-effective and available tool with global surveillance at a wide range of spatial and temporal resolutions. However, problems are related to discriminating between recently cooled lava flows and older lava flow fields [2,[5][6][7][8][9][10][11]. None of the spaceborne sensors, such as the low-to-moderate spatial resolution Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra and Aqua satellites, the Spinning Enhanced Visible and InfraRed Imager (SEVIRI) on the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) geostationary platform, or the higher spatial resolution Landsat 8OLI (Operational Land Imager) were designed to specifically undertake volcanic thermal mapping during effusive eruptions [12].…”