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Monitoring volcanic deformation

May 21, 2019

Whereas research in volcano geodesy seeks to push the boundaries of our knowledge of the physics of volcanoes, monitoring looks at changes in volcano behavior to predict when a volcanic crisis might develop. To be effective, geodetic monitoring must be done before, during, and after eruptions and must be integrated with other monitoring techniques. It requires the type of long-term commitment of time and resources that academic and industry scientists generally cannot make. A few, well-placed geodetic monitoring stations can make a huge difference to a country's ability to alert its people to an imminent volcanic eruption.

Monitoring strategies vary greatly depending on several factors such as the activity of the individual volcano, access, and available personnel and funding. Rapid advances in technology allow for more precise geodetic monitoring today than was imaginable when many of the existing volcano observatories were established. Today, deformation measurements at active volcanoes are usually made with continuous Global Positioning System (CGPS) stations, supplemented by Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) images. Neither method requires a continuous presence of personnel in the field, except for the installation and maintenance of the GPS stations; however subsequent data analysis can be highly complex.

Publication Year 2019
Title Monitoring volcanic deformation
DOI 10.1016/B978-0-12-409548-9.10902-9
Authors Maurizio Battaglia, Jorge Alpala, Rosa Alpala, Mario Angarita, Dario Arcos, Leonardo Eullides, Pablo Euillades, Cyrill Mueller, Lourdes Narvaez
Publication Type Book Chapter
Publication Subtype Book Chapter
Index ID 70203501
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse
USGS Organization Volcano Science Center
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