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Understanding the plume dynamics of explosive super-eruptions
Antonio Costa1, Yujiro J Suzuki2, Takehiro Koyaguchi2
1Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Bologna, 40128, Italy. antonio.costa@ingv.it.
Nature Communications
|February 15, 2018
Summary
Super-eruptions create volcanic plumes with complex dynamics unlike Plinian eruptions. These plumes can reach the mesosphere, significantly impacting Earth's climate and ecosystems.
Area of Science:
- Volcanology
- Earth and Planetary Sciences
- Geophysics
Background:
- Explosive super-eruptions release vast magma volumes at high mass flow rates (MFR).
- The plume dynamics of super-eruptions remain poorly understood, challenging existing models.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the fluid dynamics of volcanic plumes across a range of MFR.
- To compare plume behavior from Plinian eruptions (e.g., Pinatubo) to super-eruptions (e.g., Toba).
Main Methods:
- Utilized a fluid-dynamical model to simulate volcanic plume behavior.
- Simulations covered MFR from Plinian to super-eruption scales.
Main Results:
- Simple extrapolations of Plinian plume models are invalid for super-eruptions.
- Super-eruption plumes exhibit distinct dynamics and air entrainment regimes.
- Upper-end MFR can generate 'over-plumes' reaching the mesosphere.
Conclusions:
- Volcanic plume dynamics significantly diverge at super-eruption scales.
- Mesospheric injection of volatiles via over-plumes has profound climate and ecosystem implications.
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