Using Lake Sediment Cores to Improve Records of Volcanism at Aluto Volcano in the Main Ethiopian Rift

McNamara, Keri; Cashman, Katharine V.; Rust, Alison; Fontijn, Karen; Chalié, Françoise; Tomlinson, Emma L.; Yirgu, Gezahegn

doi:10.1029/2018gc007686

Cited by 29 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 146 publications

(275 reference statements)

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“…Thin (or trace) deposits preserved in sediments, lakes and bogs can also provide key information on more frequent smaller eruptions, the deposits of which are poorly preserved in the terrestrial geological record (e.g. McNamara et al, ). Incorporating distal tephra data into volcanological studies requires not only chemical fingerprinting of constituent glass shards but also information on mass and/or particle concentrations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Far‐travelled ash in past and future eruptions: combining tephrochronology with volcanic studies

Cashman

Rust

2019

J Quaternary Science

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Studies of recent eruptions have improved our understanding of volcanic ash transport and deposition, but have also raised important questions about the behaviour of far-travelled (distal) volcanic ash. In particular, it is difficult to reconcile estimates of distal ash mass and transport distance determined from eyewitness accounts, mapped deposits, satellite-based observations and cryptotephra records. Here we address this problem using data from well-characterized eruptions that, collectively, include all four data types. Data from recent eruptions allow us to relate eyewitness accounts to mapped deposits on the ground and satellite-based observations of ash in the air; observations from an historical eruption link eyewitness accounts to cryptotephra deposits. Together these examples show that (i) 10-20% of the erupted mass is typically deposited outside the mapped limits; (ii) estimates of the ash mass transported in volcanic clouds cannot account for all of this unmapped ash; and (iii) ash fall observed at distances beyond mapped deposits can have measurable impacts, and can form cryptotephra deposits with high (>~1000 cm −3 ) shard counts. We conclude that cryptotephra data can be incorporated into volcanological studies of ash transport and deposition and provide important insight into both the behaviour and impacts of far-travelled volcanic ash particles.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Far‐travelled ash in past and future eruptions: combining tephrochronology with volcanic studies

Cashman

Rust

2019

J Quaternary Science

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“…Volcanic activity in the MER has formed both silicic peralkaline “central” volcanoes and distributed mafic cones and lavas (e.g., B. Abebe et al, ; Gibson, ). The poorly known volcanoes of the MER have become the focus of much recent work (Aspinall et al, ; Fontijn et al, ; Hutchison et al, , Hutchison, Fusillo, et al, , Hutchison, Biggs, et al, , Hutchison, Pyle, et al, , Hutchison et al, ; Lloyd, Biggs, Wilks, et al, , Lloyd, Biggs, Birhanu, et al, ; Martin‐Jones et al, ; McNamara et al, ; Rapprich et al, ; Siegburg et al, ; Tadesse et al, ; Vye‐Brown et al, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Abebe et al, 2007;Gibson, 1969). The poorly known volcanoes of the MER have become the focus of much recent work (Aspinall et al, 2011;Fontijn et al, 2018;Hutchison et al, 2015, Hutchison, Fusillo, et al, 2016, Lloyd, Biggs, Birhanu, et al, 2018Martin-Jones et al, 2017;McNamara et al, 2018;Rapprich et al, 2016;Siegburg et al, 2017;Tadesse et al, 2018;Vye-Brown et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introduction To Volcanism In Ethiopiamentioning

confidence: 99%

The Geomorphology, Structure, and Lava Flow Dynamics of Peralkaline Rift Volcanoes From High‐Resolution Digital Elevation Models

Hunt

Pyle

Mather

2019

Geochem Geophys Geosyst

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Detailed topographic data from volcanoes can yield key insights into the controls on volcanic activity as well as hazards. High‐resolution digital elevation models generated from remote sensing data enable comparison of the geomorphology and structure of large and inaccessible volcanoes. We present new topographic data for three peralkaline volcanoes in the Main Ethiopian Rift (Fentale, Corbetti, and Gedemsa) and one volcano in the Afar Rift (Dabbahu), combined with field observations, reveal previously unidentified post‐caldera deposits and craters. Vent and crater locations are aligned with rift‐parallel faults and also with rift‐cutting structures in a variety of orientations. Caldera shape is controlled by interaction with these structures. The relative frequency and type of eruption varies greatly between these volcanoes over the past 150 kyr. Gedemsa is now largely inactive; Fentale hosts deposits from many small volume eruptions (<0.1 km3); while Corbetti has produced several large eruptions (~0.4–0.5 km3). Morphometry of peralkaline rhyolite deposits at Corbetti and Fentale, including ogives and levees, provides constraints on rheology. Emplacement viscosities of ~108–1011 Pa s at Fentale are similar to or lower than calc‐alkaline rhyolites and consistent with experimental and theoretical studies. The observations presented here have significant implications for hazard assessment in the Ethiopian rift and highlight the importance of structural features in controlling the location, magnitude, and style of volcanic activity in the Main Ethiopian Rift.

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“…While there are few data on past volcanism, an increasing number of volcanological, archaeological and palaeoenvironmental studies are beginning to compile and date eruptive deposits preserved both in terrestrial and lake‐sediment sequences throughout East Africa (e.g. Poppe et al, ; Campisano et al , ; Fontijn et al , ; McNamara et al , ). These tephrostratigraphic studies indicate that many volcanoes of the Kenya–Tanzania Rift erupted explosively during the Holocene, depositing ash over hundreds of kilometres (Fontijn et al , ; Martin‐Jones et al, 2017a,b; Lane et al , ; McNamara et al , ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Green et al , ; Hopkins et al , , Németh et al , ). Studies on East African lake sequences (Martin‐Jones et al , ; McNamara et al , ; Lane et al , ) are beginning to shed light on EARS volcanism, revealing the frequency of past, sometimes undocumented, eruptions. When these records can be linked with their on‐land equivalents, they can also give an indication of eruption size.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

History of scoria‐cone eruptions on the eastern shoulder of the Kenya–Tanzania Rift revealed in the 250‐ka sediment record of Lake Chala near Mount Kilimanjaro

Martin-Jones

Lane

Daele

et al. 2019

J Quaternary Science

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Reconstructions of the timing and frequency of past eruptions are important to assess the propensity for future volcanic activity, yet in volcanic areas such as the East African Rift only piecemeal eruption histories exist. Understanding the volcanic history of scoria‐cone fields, where eruptions are often infrequent and deposits strongly weathered, is particularly challenging. Here we reconstruct a history of volcanism from scoria cones situated along the eastern shoulders of the Kenya–Tanzania Rift, using a sequence of tephra (volcanic ash) layers preserved in the ~250‐ka sediment record of Lake Chala near Mount Kilimanjaro. Seven visible and two non‐visible (crypto‐) tephra layers in the Lake Chala sequence are attributed to activity from the Mt Kilimanjaro (northern Tanzania) and the Chyulu Hills (southern Kenya) volcanic fields, on the basis of their glass chemistry, textural characteristics and known eruption chronology. The Lake Chala record of eruptions from scoria cones in the Chyulu Hills volcanic field confirms geological and historical evidence of its recent activity, and provides first‐order age estimates for seven previously unknown eruptions. Long and well‐resolved sedimentary records such as that of Lake Chala have significant potential for resolving regional eruption chronologies spanning hundreds of thousands of years.

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Using Lake Sediment Cores to Improve Records of Volcanism at Aluto Volcano in the Main Ethiopian Rift

Cited by 29 publications

References 146 publications

Far‐travelled ash in past and future eruptions: combining tephrochronology with volcanic studies

Far‐travelled ash in past and future eruptions: combining tephrochronology with volcanic studies

The Geomorphology, Structure, and Lava Flow Dynamics of Peralkaline Rift Volcanoes From High‐Resolution Digital Elevation Models

History of scoria‐cone eruptions on the eastern shoulder of the Kenya–Tanzania Rift revealed in the 250‐ka sediment record of Lake Chala near Mount Kilimanjaro

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