Enigma of volcanoes tackled
The ERUPT project (European research on understanding processes and timescales of magma evolution in volcanic systems), funded under the Fifth Framework Programme (FP5) has moved a step closer to unravelling the enigma of volcanic eruption. When volcanoes erupt, the effects can be devastating, as with the famous Vesuvius eruption of AD79, which buried the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Eruptions can be unpredictable, occurring with little or no warning. The ERUPT project, which finishes in March, is led by researchers from Durham University working with colleagues from the University of Florence, the University of Goettingen, the Vesuvius Observatory in Naples, the University of Leeds, CSIC in Barcelona and University College Dublin. The teams have focused their studies on four volcanoes, considered to be representative of a broad range of volcano types: Stromboli off the coast of Sicily erupts gently and regularly; Teide on Tenerife and Versuvius near Naples represent medium scale eruptions; while Campi Flegrei, also near Naples, represents a volcano with large scale eruptions. The team used a new technique to examine the underground molten magma prior to eruptions. They used cores and rims of crystals, examined rock textures, exhumed magma chambers and measured subterranean temperatures and pressures to date the geophysical events that occurred prior to eruptions. When correlated with geophysical data from the known eruptions, the new information provides models of how the volcano may be operating. For example, the Vesuvius team have discovered a 'magmatic event' from studying crystal formations which correspond to an earthquake several years before the AD79 eruption. Professor Jon Davidson from Durham University and ERUPT's principal officer said, 'These new techniques are helping us build up profiles for different volcano types, which will help vulcanologists around the world understand better how magma works, its composition - what makes it more volatile - how it is stored and how and when it is likely to cause an eruption.' The team has already published a series of papers, and several more are awaiting publication. Professor Davidson hopes that the entire series will be compiled in a single volume later in the year.
Countries
Germany, Spain, Ireland, Italy, United Kingdom