Technical-Information Products for a National Volcano Early Warning System

By Marianne Guffanti, Steven R. Brantley, Peter F. Cervelli, Christopher J. Nye, George N. Serafino, Lee Siebert, Dina Y. Venezky, and Lisa Wald

Introduction

Technical outreach — distinct from general-interest and K-12 educational outreach — for volcanic hazards is aimed at providing usable scientific information about potential or ongoing volcanic activity to public officials, businesses, and individuals in support of their response, preparedness, and mitigation efforts. Within the context of a National Volcano Early Warning System (NVEWS) (Ewert et al., 2005), technical outreach is a critical process, transferring the benefits of enhanced monitoring and hazards research to key constituents who have to initiate actions or make policy decisions to lessen the hazardous impact of volcanic activity.

This report discusses recommendations of the Technical-Information Products Working Group convened in 2006 as part of the NVEWS planning process. The basic charge to the Working Group was to identify a web-based, volcanological "product line" for NVEWS to meet the specific hazard-information needs of technical users. Members of the Working Group were:

• Marianne Guffanti (Chair), USGS, Reston VA
• Steve Brantley, USGS, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory HI
• Peter Cervelli, USGS, Alaska Volcano Observatory, Anchorage AK
• Chris Nye, Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys and Alaska Volcano Observatory, Fairbanks AK
• George Serafino, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Camp Springs MD
• Lee Siebert, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC
• Dina Venezky, USGS, Volcano Hazards Team, Menlo Park CA
• Lisa Wald, USGS, Earthquake Hazards Program, Golden CO

Contents

• Introduction
• Current State of Volcanological Technical-Information Products
  • Alerts of Current Volcanic Activity
  • Hazard-Assessment Reports
  • Response Plans
  • Topical Hazard Guidance
  • Research Results
• Types of Users of NVEWS Technical-Information Products
• Guidelines for NVEWS Technical-Information Products
• Recommended NVEWS We--Based Products and Functionalities
  • Alerts and Notifications of Volcanic Activity
  • Map-based Hazard Information
  • Access to Published Articles, Assessments, and Reports
  • Digital Imagery
  • Summary Texts
  • Interactive and Background Resources
• Implementation
  • Databases
  • Website
  • Operational Issues
• Discussion
• References Cited