The sounds of lava will help researchers "look" inside the volcano and predict the eruption

In 2018, there was a powerful eruption of the Kulauea volcano in Hawaii, which disrupted the usual life on

Big Island of Hawaii and changed topologyterrain. However, the volcanic eruption began much earlier; for ten years the volcano slowly poured out lava. As a result of this process, a large lava lake formed at the summit of Kulauea.

In a new study, scientists from the University of Oregon show how the dynamics of this lava lake reflect the movement of gases and changes in the temperature of magma in the depths of the volcano.

The authors of the work explain that the lava lakeKilauea was fed from an underground magma chamber connected to the surface by a passage. Since the lava cools and solidifies rather quickly, a balance is needed for the existence of such a lake. On the one hand, a sufficient amount of new lava must constantly enter the system, and on the other hand, part of it must leave so that overflow and pressure increase do not occur.

Volcanologists analyzed data collected by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory from 2008 to 2018. An array of sensors located around the volcano records vibrations and other disturbances. 

The sound of hitting a glass with a fork changes todepending on the amount of liquid in it. In the same way, scientists say, seismic waves, which are recorded by sensors, when additional magma enters the lake. In this case, the resonance is determined by both the shape and the properties of the magma, such as temperature and gas content. By carefully studying the resonant signals during the entire eruption, the researchers were able to deduce what was going on inside the volcano without directly examining the dangerous and extreme environment.

Classical model of effusive eruptionvolcanoes like Kilauea suggests that magma is pushed up from the depths and sloshed out of the volcano like toothpaste squeezed out of a tube. In their work, scientists showed that in this case, events developed differently. Shallow processes associated with the drainage of the magma led to a large eruption.

Volcanologists believe that further research will help scientists better interpret the behavior of volcanoes and predict upcoming eruptions.

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