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new publication in Volcanica on water fountain heights at Strokkur geyser

Strokkur geyser in Iceland forms blue bulges in the water pool at the onset of an eruption. We analysed the seismic signals during bulge formation, fountain rise and water drift and compare it with the observed height and vertical speeds. We find that smaller bulges are associated with smaller speeds and that large bulges lead to larger fountain height and can hence serve as a short-term precursor.

Citation: Eibl, E. P. S., Karmacharya*, S., Shevchenko, A. V., Walter, T. R. and Hersir, G. P. (2024) “Video camera and seismic monitoring of water bulge explosion at Strokkur Geyser, Iceland”, Volcanica, 7(1), pp. 229–245. doi: 10.30909/vol.07.01.229245

The list of heights and speeds is available at GFZ Data Services:

Eibl, Eva P. S.; Karmacharya, Sandeep; Shevchenko, Alina V.; Walter, Thomas R.; Hersir, Gylfi Páll (2024): Catalogues of bulge and fountain formation at Strokkur geyser in 2017, 2020 and 2022: Heights, rising speeds and seismic signal. GFZ Data Services. https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2024.010

Data publication:

Eibl, E. P. S., Jousset, P., Dahm, T., Walter, T. R., Hersir, G. P., Vesely, N. I. K. (2019) ‘Seismic experiment at the Strokkur Geyser, Iceland, allows to derive a catalogue of over 70,000 eruptions.’ GFZ Data Services. doi: 10.5880/GFZ.2.1.2019.005

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new publication in Communications Earth & Environments

We analysed the seismic signals before and during the Geldingadalir eruption 2021 on the Icelandic peninsula Reykjanes. We used and further developed machine learning and music processing methods and were able to identify signals three days before the eruption that could indicate imminent activity. We were able to cluster similar signals in our seismic data and thus recognised previously hidden patterns. We compared our results with existing markers of episodic tremor, which stopped and started 9000 times.

Citation: Zali, Z., Mousavi, S.M., Ohrnberger, M., Eibl, E.P.S. and Cotton, F. Tremor clustering reveals pre-eruptive signals and evolution of the 2021 Geldingadalir eruption of the Fagradalsfjall Fires, Iceland. Commun Earth Environ 5, 1 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-023-01166-w

The list of episode start and end times is available on GFZ Data Services:

Eibl, E. P. S., Gnauck, U., Hamzaliyev, S., Hersir, G. P., Gudnasson, E., Pétursson, F. (2022): Catalog of start and end times of lava fountaining episodes from 2 May to 14 June 2021 during the Fagradalsfjall eruption. GFZ Data Services. doi: 10.5880/fidgeo.2022.010

Data publication:

Eibl, E. P. S.; Hersir, G. P.; Gudnason, E. Á.; Péturson, F. (2022): 2-year seismological experiment near Fagradalsfjall, Reykjanes peninsula in 2021/22. GFZ Data Services. Other/Seismic Network. doi:10.14470/4S7576570845

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EGU 2024 session on volcano-glacier interaction

I am convening the session ‘Volcano-glacier interactions: Arctic, Antarctic, and globally’ at EGU 2024 to discuss recent finding on the interaction of volcanoes and glaciers including associated hazards. It can be found here.

We inviting contributions that deal with the mitigation of the hazards associated with ice-covered volcanoes in the Arctic, Antarctic or globally, that improve the understanding of signals generated by ice-covered volcanoes, or studies focused on volcanic impacts on glaciers and vice versa. Research on recent activity is especially welcomed. This includes geological observations e.g. of deposits in the field or remote-sensing data, together with experimental and modelling approaches. We also invite contributions on past activity and glaciovolcanic deposits. We aim to bring together scientists from volcanology, glaciology, seismology, geodesy, hydrology, geomorphology and atmospheric science in order to enable a broad discussion and interaction.

The abstract submission deadline is 10 January 2024, 13:00 CET.

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Field work in Iceland related to unrest and eruption in November/ December 2023

In November 2023 a team from the University of Potsdam went to Iceland to install a rotational sensor near the unrest on the Reykjanes peninsula. We chose a site in the Svartsengi power plant, a location that is still being lifted. This seems to be the location where magma rises.

Since the eruption from 19 December 2023 at the Sundhnukurgigar crater row, we have seismic 6C recordings from about 2.3 km distance. This should give us amazing insights into the tremor and earthquakes. I hope for funding from the EU to pursue this in my ERC proposal TREMORWAVES.

I’ve talked about our field work in this German article: https://www.uni-potsdam.de/de/nachrichten/detail/2023-12-05-das-schlimmste-ereignis-in-island-seit-1973-geoforscherin-prof-dr-eva-eibl-ueber

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new preprint providing an overview of the Geldingadalir 2021 eruption/ Fagradalsfjall Fires

You want to get an overview of the whole 6 months of the Geldingadalir 2021 eruption in the Fagradalsfjall fires? Then you should read our newest preprint. Based on seismic tremor recording we mapped the episodic effusion. Between March and September we found nearly 9000 episodes of two orders of magnitude different duration and repose times. We discuss them in the context of changes in the system but also a open and closed vent system. Our manuscript is under review with JGR for a special issue on ‘Advances in understanding volcanic processes’.

The preprint can be found here: https://essopenarchive.org/users/552538/articles/688333-illuminating-the-transition-from-an-open-to-a-semi-closed-volcanic-vent-system-through-episodic-tremor-duration-and-shape

Citation: Eva P. S. Eibl, Thorvaldur Thordarson, William M. Moreland, Egill Á. Gudnason, Ármann Höskuldsson, Gylfi P. Hersir Illuminating the transition from an open to a semi-closed volcanic vent system through episodic tremor duration and shape. ESS Open Archive . November 27, 2023. DOI: 10.22541/essoar.170110667.79839092/v1

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New manuscript: Seismological signals caused by the Skafta jökulhlaup in 2015, Iceland

This manuscript has ripened for several years. 🙂 It is now published with Earth Surface Dynamics and provides an overview of all seismological signals detected during the 2015 Skafta jökulhlaup. This includes tremor migrating with the flood front, hydrothermal explosion signals, geothermal boiling and subaerial river tremor as well as icequakes linked to the gradual collapse of the ice shelf above the lake and transient event migrating with the flood front. We show the diversity of processes that get activated during the largest measured jökulhlaup since the beginning of measurements and provide high-resolution images of the flood front and ice sheet collapse.

The signals were analysed using data from a seismic array at 10 to 50 km distance from the source installed by the University College Dublin and the local seismic network maintained by the Icelandic Meteorological Office. The paper can be found here: https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/11/933/2023/

The lists of tremor back azimuths and earthquake locations are available on GFZ Data Services:

Eibl, E. P. S.; Vogfjörd, K.; Dietrich, T.; Heimann, S., Bean, C. (2023): Event catalogs of seismic events accompanying the 30 September to 5 October 2015 Skaftá flood. GFZ Data Services. doi: 10.5880/fidgeo.2023.023

Data publication:

Bean, Christopher J.; Vogfjörd, Kristin S. (2020): Seismic array data for monitoring and tracking tremor sources during subglacial floods and volcanic eruptions at Vatnajökull (Vatna Glacier), Iceland. GFZ Data Services. Other/Seismic Network. doi:10.14470/0Y7568667884.

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Jerome M. Paros Scholarship in Geophysical Instrumentation for Daniel Binder

Daniel Binder, PhD student in my group, won the Jerome M. Paros Scholarship in Geophysical Instrumentation this year at AGU. The Scholarship comes with a $5000 price. He got it because he developed casings for geophones that can fit into the drillhole of a Kovacs ice drill. These casing can be printed using a standard 3D printer. These casings were printed early this year and used during the field work in Greenland in April.