Tim R. Orr
Physical volcanology and eruption dynamics of basaltic volcanoes, principally Kīlauea volcano, Hawaii, and the Bering Sea Basalt Province, Alaska. Eruptive histories and hazards of Hawaiian and Alaska volcanoes.
My position as a Research Geologist at the Alaska Volcano Observatory focuses on fundamental research on eruption and flow field processes to understand hazards better and improve forecasts, first in Hawaiʻi and now in Alaska. My work entails observing and measuring eruptive activity as part of operational monitoring and through directed field studies to analyze the data collected to gain fundamental insights into eruptive phenomena in Hawaiʻi, Alaska, and worldwide.
In addition, a fundamental part of my position is the monitoring of, and response to, volcanic unrest and eruptions. I serve as a 24/7 on-call duty scientist and duty remote sensor at AVO periodically throughout the year, and more often as needed during eruption crises, with primary responsibility for assessing volcanic activity daily and issuing hazard alerts. Because of my previous experience at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, I am also called upon to help with eruption response efforts in Hawaiʻi, when needed.
Professional Experience
Research Geologist, USGS Alaska Volcano Observatory, June 2017–Present
Research Geologist, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, May 2016–June 2017
Operational Geologist, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, June 2005–May 2016
Physical Science Technician, University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, November 2002–June 2005
Education and Certifications
University of Hawaii at Manoa, PH.D. (2015) – Geology and Geophysics
Northern Arizona University, M.S. (1997) – Geology
University of Montana, B.A. (1995) – Geology
University of Montana, B.A. (1993) – Geography
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union
Geological Society of America
International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 84
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Filter Total Items: 82
Automated tracking of lava lake level using thermal images at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai’i Automated tracking of lava lake level using thermal images at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai’i
Tracking the level of the lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u Crater, at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai’i, is an essential part of monitoring the ongoing eruption and forecasting potentially hazardous changes in activity. We describe a simple automated image processing routine that analyzes continuously-acquired thermal images of the lava lake and measures lava level. The method uses three...
Authors
Matthew R. Patrick, Don Swanson, Tim R. Orr
The 2014-2015 Pāhoa lava flow crisis at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i: Disaster avoided and lessons learned The 2014-2015 Pāhoa lava flow crisis at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i: Disaster avoided and lessons learned
Lava flow crises are nothing new on the Island of Hawai‘i, where their destructive force has been demonstrated repeatedly over the past several hundred years. The 2014–2015 Pāhoa lava flow crisis, however, was unique in terms of its societal impact and volcanological characteristics. Despite low effusion rates, a long-lived lava flow whose extent reached 20 km (the longest at Kīlauea...
Authors
Michael P. Poland, Tim R. Orr, James P. Kauahikaua, Steven R. Brantley, Janet L. Babb, Matthew R. Patrick, Christina A. Neal, Kyle R. Anderson, Loren Antolik, Matthew K. Burgess, Tamar Elias, Steven Fuke, Pauline Fukunaga, Ingrid A. Johanson, Marian Kagimoto, Kevan P. Kamibayashi, Lopaka Lee, Asta Miklius, William Million, Cyril J. Moniz, Paul G. Okubo, Andrew Sutton, T. Jane Takahashi, Weston A. Thelen, Willam Tollett, Frank A. Trusdell
Stronger or longer: Discriminating between Hawaiian and Strombolian eruption styles Stronger or longer: Discriminating between Hawaiian and Strombolian eruption styles
The weakest explosive volcanic eruptions globally, Strombolian explosions and Hawaiian fountaining, are also the most common. Yet, despite over a hundred years of observations, no classifications have offered a convincing, quantitative way of demarcating these two styles. New observations show that the two styles are distinct in their eruptive timescale, with the duration of Hawaiian...
Authors
Bruce F. Houghton, Jacopo Taddeucci, D. Andronico, H Gonnerman, M Pistolesi, Matthew R. Patrick, Tim R. Orr, Don Swanson, M Edmonds, Rebecca J. Carey, P. Scarlato
Lava lake level as a gauge of magma reservoir pressure and eruptive hazard Lava lake level as a gauge of magma reservoir pressure and eruptive hazard
Forecasting volcanic activity relies fundamentally on tracking magma pressure through the use of proxies, such as ground surface deformation and earthquake rates. Lava lakes at open-vent basaltic volcanoes provide a window into the uppermost magma system for gauging reservoir pressure changes more directly. At Kīlauea Volcano (Hawaiʻi, USA) the surface height of the summit lava lake in
Authors
Matthew R. Patrick, Kyle R. Anderson, Michael P. Poland, Tim R. Orr, Donald A. Swanson
Primative components, crustal assimilation, and magmatic degassing of the 2008 Kilauea summit eruption Primative components, crustal assimilation, and magmatic degassing of the 2008 Kilauea summit eruption
Simultaneous summit and rift zone eruptions at Kīlauea starting in 2008 reflect a shallow eruptive plumbing system inundated by a bourgeoning supply of new magma from depth. Olivine-hosted melt inclusions, host glass, and bulk lava compositions of magma erupted at both the summit and east rift zone demonstrate chemical continuity at both ends of a well-worn summit-to-rift pipeline...
Authors
Michael C. Rowe, Carl R. Thornber, Tim R. Orr
A multipurpose camera system for monitoring Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai'i A multipurpose camera system for monitoring Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai'i
We describe a low-cost, compact multipurpose camera system designed for field deployment at active volcanoes that can be used either as a webcam (transmitting images back to an observatory in real-time) or as a time-lapse camera system (storing images onto the camera system for periodic retrieval during field visits). The system also has the capability to acquire high-definition video...
Authors
Matthew R. Patrick, Tim R. Orr, Lopaka Lee, Cyril J. Moniz
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 84
No results found.
Filter Total Items: 82
Automated tracking of lava lake level using thermal images at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai’i Automated tracking of lava lake level using thermal images at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai’i
Tracking the level of the lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u Crater, at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai’i, is an essential part of monitoring the ongoing eruption and forecasting potentially hazardous changes in activity. We describe a simple automated image processing routine that analyzes continuously-acquired thermal images of the lava lake and measures lava level. The method uses three...
Authors
Matthew R. Patrick, Don Swanson, Tim R. Orr
The 2014-2015 Pāhoa lava flow crisis at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i: Disaster avoided and lessons learned The 2014-2015 Pāhoa lava flow crisis at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai‘i: Disaster avoided and lessons learned
Lava flow crises are nothing new on the Island of Hawai‘i, where their destructive force has been demonstrated repeatedly over the past several hundred years. The 2014–2015 Pāhoa lava flow crisis, however, was unique in terms of its societal impact and volcanological characteristics. Despite low effusion rates, a long-lived lava flow whose extent reached 20 km (the longest at Kīlauea...
Authors
Michael P. Poland, Tim R. Orr, James P. Kauahikaua, Steven R. Brantley, Janet L. Babb, Matthew R. Patrick, Christina A. Neal, Kyle R. Anderson, Loren Antolik, Matthew K. Burgess, Tamar Elias, Steven Fuke, Pauline Fukunaga, Ingrid A. Johanson, Marian Kagimoto, Kevan P. Kamibayashi, Lopaka Lee, Asta Miklius, William Million, Cyril J. Moniz, Paul G. Okubo, Andrew Sutton, T. Jane Takahashi, Weston A. Thelen, Willam Tollett, Frank A. Trusdell
Stronger or longer: Discriminating between Hawaiian and Strombolian eruption styles Stronger or longer: Discriminating between Hawaiian and Strombolian eruption styles
The weakest explosive volcanic eruptions globally, Strombolian explosions and Hawaiian fountaining, are also the most common. Yet, despite over a hundred years of observations, no classifications have offered a convincing, quantitative way of demarcating these two styles. New observations show that the two styles are distinct in their eruptive timescale, with the duration of Hawaiian...
Authors
Bruce F. Houghton, Jacopo Taddeucci, D. Andronico, H Gonnerman, M Pistolesi, Matthew R. Patrick, Tim R. Orr, Don Swanson, M Edmonds, Rebecca J. Carey, P. Scarlato
Lava lake level as a gauge of magma reservoir pressure and eruptive hazard Lava lake level as a gauge of magma reservoir pressure and eruptive hazard
Forecasting volcanic activity relies fundamentally on tracking magma pressure through the use of proxies, such as ground surface deformation and earthquake rates. Lava lakes at open-vent basaltic volcanoes provide a window into the uppermost magma system for gauging reservoir pressure changes more directly. At Kīlauea Volcano (Hawaiʻi, USA) the surface height of the summit lava lake in
Authors
Matthew R. Patrick, Kyle R. Anderson, Michael P. Poland, Tim R. Orr, Donald A. Swanson
Primative components, crustal assimilation, and magmatic degassing of the 2008 Kilauea summit eruption Primative components, crustal assimilation, and magmatic degassing of the 2008 Kilauea summit eruption
Simultaneous summit and rift zone eruptions at Kīlauea starting in 2008 reflect a shallow eruptive plumbing system inundated by a bourgeoning supply of new magma from depth. Olivine-hosted melt inclusions, host glass, and bulk lava compositions of magma erupted at both the summit and east rift zone demonstrate chemical continuity at both ends of a well-worn summit-to-rift pipeline...
Authors
Michael C. Rowe, Carl R. Thornber, Tim R. Orr
A multipurpose camera system for monitoring Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai'i A multipurpose camera system for monitoring Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai'i
We describe a low-cost, compact multipurpose camera system designed for field deployment at active volcanoes that can be used either as a webcam (transmitting images back to an observatory in real-time) or as a time-lapse camera system (storing images onto the camera system for periodic retrieval during field visits). The system also has the capability to acquire high-definition video...
Authors
Matthew R. Patrick, Tim R. Orr, Lopaka Lee, Cyril J. Moniz
*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