As a research geophysicist focusing on volcano geodesy, I analyze ground- and satellite-based data to explore how magma moves underground, and discover other ways volcanoes deform.
Prior to joining the USGS, I was a visiting researcher at the Earthquake Research Institute at the University of Tokyo studying hydrothermal deformation at Miyake Jima volcano and an NSF post-doctoral fellow at the University of Wisconsin studying the seismic signals associated with flank sector failure at Kilauea volcano.
Professional Experience
Co-chair of the joint IAVCEI/IAG Volcano Geodesy Commission
Prior AGU Geodesy section OSPA Coordinator
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. in Geophysics, Stanford University, September 2008
Thesis Title: Time dependent deformation of Kilauea volcano, Hawaii Advisor: Paul Segall
M.S. in Geophysics, Stanford University, June 2005
B.S. with High Honors in Geology with minor in Mathematics, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, May 2002
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union
IAVCEI
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 17
Understanding the drivers of volcano deformation through geodetic model verification and validation
Volcano geodesy often involves the use of models to explain observed surface deformation. A variety of forward models are used, from analytical point sources to numerical simulations that consider complex magma system geometries, topography, and material properties. Various inversion methods can then be used to relate observed volcano data to models. Ideally, forward models should be verified thro
Authors
Joshua Allen Crozier, Leif Karlstrom, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Mario Angarita, Valérie Cayol, Mary Grace Bato, Taiyi Wang, Ronni Grapenthin, Tara Shreve, Kyle R. Anderson, Ana Astort, Olivier Bodart, Flavio Cannavò, Gilda Currenti, Farshid Dabaghi, Brittany A. Erickson, Deepak Garg, Matthew Head, Adriana Iozzia, Young Cheol Kim, Hélène Le Mével, Camila Novoa Lizama, Cody Rucker, Francesca Silverii, Yan Zhan
The 2018 eruption of Kīlauea: Insights, puzzles, and opportunities for volcano science
The science of volcanology advances disproportionately during exceptionally large or well-observed eruptions. The 2018 eruption of Kīlauea Volcano (Hawai‘i) was its most impactful in centuries, involving an outpouring of more than one cubic kilometer of basalt, a magnitude 7 flank earthquake, and the volcano’s largest summit collapse since at least the nineteenth century. Eruptive activity was doc
Authors
Kyle R. Anderson, Tom Shea, Kendra J. Lynn, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Donald A. Swanson, Matthew R. Patrick, Brian Shiro, Christina A. Neal
Earthquake-derived seismic velocity changes during the 2018 caldera collapse of Kīlauea volcano
The 2018 Kīlauea caldera collapse produced extraordinary sequences of seismicity and deformation, with 62 episodic collapse events which significantly altered the landscape of the summit region. Despite decades of focused scientific studies at Kīlauea, detailed information about the internal structure of the volcano is limited. Recently developed techniques in seismic interferometry can be used to
Authors
Alicia J. Hotovec-Ellis, Brian Shiro, David R. Shelly, Kyle R. Anderson, Matt Haney, Weston Thelen, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Ingrid Johanson
Rainfall an unlikely trigger of Kilauea’s 2018 rift eruption
If volcanic eruptions could be forecast from the occurrence of some external process, it might be possible to better mitigate risk and protect lives and livelihoods. Farquharson and Amelung1 suggested that the 2018 lower East Rift Zone (ERZ) eruption of Kīlauea Volcano—the most destructive eruption in Hawai‘i in at least 200 years2—was triggered by extreme precipitation, which caused increased por
Authors
M. Poland, Shaul Hurwitz, James P. Kauahikaua, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Kyle R. Anderson, Ingrid Johanson, Matthew R. Patrick, Christina A. Neal
The 2011-2019 Long Valley Caldera inflation: New insights from separation of superimposed geodetic signals and 3D modeling
Increasingly accurate, and spatio-temporally dense, measurements of Earth surface movements enable us to identify multiple deformation patterns and highlight the need to properly characterize the related source processes. This is particularly important in tectonically active areas, where deformation measurement is crucial for monitoring ongoing processes and assessing future hazard. Long Valley Ca
Authors
F. Silverii, F. Pulvirenti, Emily Montgomery-Brown, A. Borsa, W. Neely
Periodic dike intrusions at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii
Forecasting heightened magmatic activity is key to assessing and mitigating global volcanic hazards, including eruptions from lateral rift zones at basaltic volcanoes. At Kı-lauea volcano, Hawai’i (United States), planar dikes intrude its east rift zone (ERZ) and repeatedly affect the same segments. Here we show that Kı-lauea’s upper and middle ERZ dikes in the last four decades intruded at regula
Authors
Emily Montgomery-Brown, Asta Miklius
The cascading origin of the 2018 Kīlauea eruption and implications for future forecasting
The 2018 summit and flank eruption of Kīlauea Volcano was one of the largest volcanic events in Hawaiʻi in 200 years. Data suggest that a backup in the magma plumbing system at the long-lived Puʻu ʻŌʻō eruption site caused widespread pressurization in the volcano, driving magma into the lower flank. The eruption evolved, and its impact expanded, as a sequence of cascading events, allowing relative
Authors
Matthew R. Patrick, Bruce F. Houghton, Kyle R. Anderson, Michael P. Poland, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Ingrid Johanson, Weston Thelen, Tamar Elias
Combined seismic and geodetic analysis before, during and after the 2018 Mt. Etna eruption
In December 2018, Etna volcano experienced one of the largest episodes of unrest since the installation of geophysical monitoring networks in 1970. The unrest culminated in a short eruption with a small volume of lava erupted, a significant seismic crisis and deformation of the entire volcanic edifice of magnitude never recorded before at Mount Etna. Here we describe the evolution of the 2018 erup
Authors
M. Mattia, V. Bruno, Emily Montgomery-Brown, D. Patane, G. Barberi, M. Coltelli
Post-1978 tumescence at Long Valley Caldera, California: A geophysical perspective
Long Valley Caldera has been restless since at least 1978. Prominent symptoms of this unrest include earthquake swarms and tumescence (inflation) centered on the resurgent dome. Over the years, interpretations of physical processes underlying this unrest have varied considerably. Results from a collection of geophysical studies infer the presence and/or active intrusion of magma in the crust. Geol
Authors
David P. Hill, Emily Montgomery-Brown, David R. Shelly, Ashton F. Flinders, Stephanie Prejean
Hydrologically induced deformation in Long Valley Caldera and adjacent Sierra Nevada
Vertical and horizontal components of GNSS displacements in the Long Valley Caldera and adjacent Sierra Nevada range show a clear correlation with hydrological trends at both multiyear and seasonal time scales. We observe a clear vertical and horizontal seasonal deformation pattern primarily attributable to the solid earth response to hydrological surface loading at large-to-regional (Sierra Nevad
Authors
Francesca Silverii, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Adrian Borsa, Andrew Barbour
Interseismic quiescence and triggered slip of active normal faults of Kīlauea Volcano’s south flank during 2001-2018
The mobile south flank of Kīlauea Volcano hosts two normal fault systems, the Koa'e fault system (KFS) and the Hilina fault system (HFS). In historical time, at least three M>6.5 earthquakes
have occurred on the basal detachment of the Kīlauea Volcano's south flank, with the most recent being the 4 May 2018 M6.9 earthquake. Here we analyze kinematic Global Positioning System data collected from 20
Authors
Kang Wang, Hayden MacArthur, Ingrid Johanson, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Michael P. Poland, Eric Cannon, Matthew d'Alessio, Roland Bürgmann
Rate of magma supply beneath Mammoth Mountain, California based on helium isotopes and CO2 emissions
Mammoth Mountain, California, has exhibited unrest over the past ~30 years, characterized by seismicity over a broad range of depths, elevated 3He/4He ratios in fumarolic gas, and large-scale diffuse CO2 emissions. This activity has been attributed to magmatic intrusion, but minimal ground deformation and the presence of a shallow crustal gas reservoir beneath Mammoth Mountain pose a challenge for
Authors
Jennifer L. Lewicki, William C. Evans, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Margaret T. Mangan, John King, Andrew Hunt
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 17
Understanding the drivers of volcano deformation through geodetic model verification and validation
Volcano geodesy often involves the use of models to explain observed surface deformation. A variety of forward models are used, from analytical point sources to numerical simulations that consider complex magma system geometries, topography, and material properties. Various inversion methods can then be used to relate observed volcano data to models. Ideally, forward models should be verified throAuthorsJoshua Allen Crozier, Leif Karlstrom, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Mario Angarita, Valérie Cayol, Mary Grace Bato, Taiyi Wang, Ronni Grapenthin, Tara Shreve, Kyle R. Anderson, Ana Astort, Olivier Bodart, Flavio Cannavò, Gilda Currenti, Farshid Dabaghi, Brittany A. Erickson, Deepak Garg, Matthew Head, Adriana Iozzia, Young Cheol Kim, Hélène Le Mével, Camila Novoa Lizama, Cody Rucker, Francesca Silverii, Yan ZhanThe 2018 eruption of Kīlauea: Insights, puzzles, and opportunities for volcano science
The science of volcanology advances disproportionately during exceptionally large or well-observed eruptions. The 2018 eruption of Kīlauea Volcano (Hawai‘i) was its most impactful in centuries, involving an outpouring of more than one cubic kilometer of basalt, a magnitude 7 flank earthquake, and the volcano’s largest summit collapse since at least the nineteenth century. Eruptive activity was docAuthorsKyle R. Anderson, Tom Shea, Kendra J. Lynn, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Donald A. Swanson, Matthew R. Patrick, Brian Shiro, Christina A. NealEarthquake-derived seismic velocity changes during the 2018 caldera collapse of Kīlauea volcano
The 2018 Kīlauea caldera collapse produced extraordinary sequences of seismicity and deformation, with 62 episodic collapse events which significantly altered the landscape of the summit region. Despite decades of focused scientific studies at Kīlauea, detailed information about the internal structure of the volcano is limited. Recently developed techniques in seismic interferometry can be used toAuthorsAlicia J. Hotovec-Ellis, Brian Shiro, David R. Shelly, Kyle R. Anderson, Matt Haney, Weston Thelen, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Ingrid JohansonRainfall an unlikely trigger of Kilauea’s 2018 rift eruption
If volcanic eruptions could be forecast from the occurrence of some external process, it might be possible to better mitigate risk and protect lives and livelihoods. Farquharson and Amelung1 suggested that the 2018 lower East Rift Zone (ERZ) eruption of Kīlauea Volcano—the most destructive eruption in Hawai‘i in at least 200 years2—was triggered by extreme precipitation, which caused increased porAuthorsM. Poland, Shaul Hurwitz, James P. Kauahikaua, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Kyle R. Anderson, Ingrid Johanson, Matthew R. Patrick, Christina A. NealThe 2011-2019 Long Valley Caldera inflation: New insights from separation of superimposed geodetic signals and 3D modeling
Increasingly accurate, and spatio-temporally dense, measurements of Earth surface movements enable us to identify multiple deformation patterns and highlight the need to properly characterize the related source processes. This is particularly important in tectonically active areas, where deformation measurement is crucial for monitoring ongoing processes and assessing future hazard. Long Valley CaAuthorsF. Silverii, F. Pulvirenti, Emily Montgomery-Brown, A. Borsa, W. NeelyPeriodic dike intrusions at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii
Forecasting heightened magmatic activity is key to assessing and mitigating global volcanic hazards, including eruptions from lateral rift zones at basaltic volcanoes. At Kı-lauea volcano, Hawai’i (United States), planar dikes intrude its east rift zone (ERZ) and repeatedly affect the same segments. Here we show that Kı-lauea’s upper and middle ERZ dikes in the last four decades intruded at regulaAuthorsEmily Montgomery-Brown, Asta MikliusThe cascading origin of the 2018 Kīlauea eruption and implications for future forecasting
The 2018 summit and flank eruption of Kīlauea Volcano was one of the largest volcanic events in Hawaiʻi in 200 years. Data suggest that a backup in the magma plumbing system at the long-lived Puʻu ʻŌʻō eruption site caused widespread pressurization in the volcano, driving magma into the lower flank. The eruption evolved, and its impact expanded, as a sequence of cascading events, allowing relativeAuthorsMatthew R. Patrick, Bruce F. Houghton, Kyle R. Anderson, Michael P. Poland, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Ingrid Johanson, Weston Thelen, Tamar EliasCombined seismic and geodetic analysis before, during and after the 2018 Mt. Etna eruption
In December 2018, Etna volcano experienced one of the largest episodes of unrest since the installation of geophysical monitoring networks in 1970. The unrest culminated in a short eruption with a small volume of lava erupted, a significant seismic crisis and deformation of the entire volcanic edifice of magnitude never recorded before at Mount Etna. Here we describe the evolution of the 2018 erupAuthorsM. Mattia, V. Bruno, Emily Montgomery-Brown, D. Patane, G. Barberi, M. ColtelliPost-1978 tumescence at Long Valley Caldera, California: A geophysical perspective
Long Valley Caldera has been restless since at least 1978. Prominent symptoms of this unrest include earthquake swarms and tumescence (inflation) centered on the resurgent dome. Over the years, interpretations of physical processes underlying this unrest have varied considerably. Results from a collection of geophysical studies infer the presence and/or active intrusion of magma in the crust. GeolAuthorsDavid P. Hill, Emily Montgomery-Brown, David R. Shelly, Ashton F. Flinders, Stephanie PrejeanHydrologically induced deformation in Long Valley Caldera and adjacent Sierra Nevada
Vertical and horizontal components of GNSS displacements in the Long Valley Caldera and adjacent Sierra Nevada range show a clear correlation with hydrological trends at both multiyear and seasonal time scales. We observe a clear vertical and horizontal seasonal deformation pattern primarily attributable to the solid earth response to hydrological surface loading at large-to-regional (Sierra NevadAuthorsFrancesca Silverii, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Adrian Borsa, Andrew BarbourInterseismic quiescence and triggered slip of active normal faults of Kīlauea Volcano’s south flank during 2001-2018
The mobile south flank of Kīlauea Volcano hosts two normal fault systems, the Koa'e fault system (KFS) and the Hilina fault system (HFS). In historical time, at least three M>6.5 earthquakes have occurred on the basal detachment of the Kīlauea Volcano's south flank, with the most recent being the 4 May 2018 M6.9 earthquake. Here we analyze kinematic Global Positioning System data collected from 20AuthorsKang Wang, Hayden MacArthur, Ingrid Johanson, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Michael P. Poland, Eric Cannon, Matthew d'Alessio, Roland BürgmannRate of magma supply beneath Mammoth Mountain, California based on helium isotopes and CO2 emissions
Mammoth Mountain, California, has exhibited unrest over the past ~30 years, characterized by seismicity over a broad range of depths, elevated 3He/4He ratios in fumarolic gas, and large-scale diffuse CO2 emissions. This activity has been attributed to magmatic intrusion, but minimal ground deformation and the presence of a shallow crustal gas reservoir beneath Mammoth Mountain pose a challenge forAuthorsJennifer L. Lewicki, William C. Evans, Emily Montgomery-Brown, Margaret T. Mangan, John King, Andrew Hunt
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government