Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Volcanology
Rift-related magmatism influences petroleum systems development in the NE Irish Rockall Basin, offshore Ireland
Published: 2018-01-29
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology
Large volumes of hydrocarbons reside in volcanically influenced sedimentary basins. Despite having a good conceptual understanding of how magmatism impacts the petroleum system of such basins, we still lack detailed case studies documenting precisely how intrusive magmatism influences, for example, trap development and reservoir quality. Here we combine 3D seismic reflection, borehole, [...]
The role of H2O on the extraction of melt from crystallising magmas
Published: 2018-01-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
The segregation and accumulation of felsic melts, from crystallising crustal magma reservoirs, is essential for the chemical evolution of the crust and is a phenomenon preceding some of the largest eruptions on Earth. The physical properties of residual melt and magma and the time over which the conditions remain appropriate for melt extraction are important factors controlling the efficiency of [...]
Upscaling permeability in anisotropic volcanic systems
Published: 2018-01-11
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
Permeability is an increasingly prevalent metric included in volcano modelling; however, it is a property that can exhibit anisotropy in volcanic environments. Permeability of a layered medium can be described by the arithmetic or harmonic means of the permeabilities of the constituent units, depending on the orientation of flow with respect to layering (i.e. flow parallel or perpendicular to [...]
Structural signatures of igneous sheet intrusion propagation
Published: 2017-12-08
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology
The geometry and distribution of planar igneous bodies (i.e. sheet intrusions), such as dykes, sills, and inclined sheets, has long been used to determine emplacement mechanics, define melt source locations, and reconstruct palaeostress conditions to shed light on various tectonic and magmatic processes. Since the 1970’s we have recognised that sheet intrusions do not necessarily display a [...]
Visions of Volcanoes
Published: 2017-12-03
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
The long nineteenth century marked an important transition in the understanding of the nature of combustion and fire, and of volcanoes and the interior of the earth. It was also a period when dramatic eruptions of Vesuvius lit up the night skies of Naples, providing ample opportunities for travellers, natural philosophers, and early geologists to get up close to the glowing lavas of an active [...]
Scientific and risk-reduction benefits of involving citizens in monitoring volcanic activity
Published: 2017-11-20
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
Citizen science involves volunteers, regardless of scientific background, in conducting scientific investigations. Although the extent of citizen involvement varies, the reported benefits of such activities include: the generation of new knowledge; increased public understanding of and confidence in science, and ‘real-time’ insights into rapidly evolving events such as natural hazards. In [...]
The 1902-3 eruptions of the Soufrière, St Vincent: impacts, relief and response
Published: 2017-11-15
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
Retrospective analysis of the contemporary colonial and scientific records of a major explosive eruption of the Soufrière of St Vincent from 1902-1903 reveals how this significant and prolonged event presented challenges to the authorities charged with managing the crisis and its aftermath. In a small-island setting vulnerable to multiple hazards, the spatial footprint of the volcanic hazard and [...]
Magmatic Densities Control Erupted Volumes in Icelandic Volcanic Systems
Published: 2017-11-05
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
The control of magmatic physical properties on the range and volumetric distribution of eruptions has been investigated for the active volcanic zones of Iceland. Magmatic density and viscosity both exert control over observed erupted volumes. The largest volume of erupted material sits at a density and viscosity minimum corresponding to the composition of basalts at the arrival of plagioclase on [...]
Precision and Accuracy in Geochronology
Published: 2017-11-05
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Stratigraphy, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology
Geochronology in Earth and Solar System science is increasingly in demand, and this demand is not only for more results, but for more precise, more accurate, and more easily interpreted temporal constraints. Because modern research often requires multiple dating methods, scrupulous inter- and intramethod calibration in absolute time is required. However, improved precision has highlighted [...]
Geological applications of digital terrain analysis
Published: 2017-11-01
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geographic Information Sciences, Geography, Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Remote Sensing, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Spatial Science, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology
Editorial to the IJGIS Special Issue on "Geological applications of digital terrain analysis". In this volume, the modern advances in the field of geological terrain analysis are presented, while emphasis is given to the quantitative analysis of modern datasets.
Normal fault growth in layered basaltic rocks: the role of strain rate in fault evolution
Published: 2017-10-30
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology
Conceptual models for the evolution of dilatant faults in volcanic rift settings involve a step-wise growth pattern, involving upward propagation of subsurface faults, surface monocline formation, which are breached by subvertical, open faults. Immature, discontinuous normal faults are considered representative of the early stages of mature, linked faults that accommodate extensional strains. We [...]
Seismic Interpretation of Sill-Complexes in Sedimentary Basins: The ‘Sub-Sill Imaging Problem’
Published: 2017-10-30
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
Application of 3D-seismic reflection-data to igneous systems in sedimentary basins has led to a revolution in the understanding of mafic sill-complexes. However, there is considerable uncertainty on how geometries and architecture of sill complexes within the subsurface relates those imaged in seismic reflection-data. To provide constraints on how sill complexes in seismic data should be [...]
Igneous sills record far-field and near-field stress interactions during volcano construction: Isle of Mull, Scotland
Published: 2017-10-28
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology
Sill emplacement is typically associated with horizontally mechanically layered host rocks in a near-hydrostatic far-field stress state, where contrasting mechanical properties across the layers promote transitions from dykes, or inclined sheets, to sills. We used detailed field observations from the Loch Scridain Sill Complex (Isle of Mull, UK), and mechanical models to show that layering is not [...]
Tempo of magma degassing and the genesis of porphyry copper deposits
Published: 2017-10-25
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Volcanology
Porphyry deposits are copper-rich orebodies formed by precipitation of metal sulphides from hydrothermal fluids released from magmatic intrusions that cooled at depth within the Earth’s crust. Finding new porphyry deposits is essential because they are our largest source of copper and they also contain other strategic metals including gold and molybdenum. However, the discovery of giant porphyry [...]
Cenozoic contourites in the eastern Great Australian Bight, offshore southern Australia: implications for the onset of the Leeuwin Current
Published: 2017-10-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Volcanology
Thermohaline oceanic currents influence global heat transfer, controlling local and global variations in climate, biodiversity, and the terrestrial biosphere. Paleoceanographic studies typically use biostratigraphic and geochemical proxies to reconstruct the dynamics of these currents in Earth’s ancient oceans, although seismic reflection data have also been successfully employed, most commonly [...]