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Seismic Techniques and Suggested Instrumentation to Monitor Volcanoes

Scientific Investigations Report 2024-5062-B
By: , , , , , and 
https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20245062B

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Introduction

Changes in the pressure or location of magma can stress or break surrounding rocks and trigger flow of nearby waters and gases, causing seismic signals, such as discrete earthquakes and tremor. These phenomena are types of seismic unrest that commonly precede eruption and can be used to forecast volcanic activity. Mass movements at the surface, including avalanches, debris flows, and lahars, may also generate seismic signals that are specifically addressed in chapter H, this volume (Thelen and others, 2024). Our focus in this chapter is to determine the levels of instrumentation recommended to produce high-quality, well-constrained seismic observations important for early warning of impending eruptions, detecting changes in ongoing eruptions, and characterizing other hazardous volcanic events.

There are emerging techniques and new types of instrumentation, such as distributed acoustic sensing or rotational seismometers, that we do not consider here. These types of instrumentation show promise for monitoring but still require maturation before being considered more generally in volcano monitoring.

Most of the capabilities mentioned below are universal for all types of volcanic systems, although some are best applied to stratovolcanoes with an apical single vent. In some settings, such as calderas or shield volcanoes, we must broaden coverage to include multiple possible storage regions or vent locations. As an example, Thelen (2014) discretized the long rift zones of shield volcanoes in Hawaiʻi as a set of evenly spaced “vents.” In this construct, each vent comes with recommendations, and several thousand network configurations were simulated to assess the effect on network quality levels and to determine the most efficient network design. The same process could be applied in a caldera setting or a volcanic field, where an evenly spaced grid of potential vents is considered. Localized recommendations for each unique system are beyond the scope of this report and left up to local experts to assess based on the conditions, restrictions, and requirements of each volcano.

Suggested Citation

Thelen, W.A., Lyons, J.J., Wech, A.G., Moran, S.C., Haney, M.M., and Flinders, A.F., 2024, Seismic techniques and suggested instrumentation to monitor volcanoes, chap. B of Flinders, A.F., Lowenstern, J.B., Coombs, M.L., and Poland, M.P., eds., Recommended capabilities and instrumentation for volcano monitoring in the United States: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2024–5062–B, 9 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20245062B.

ISSN: 2328-0328 (online)

ISSN: 2328-031X (print)

Table of Contents

  • Introduction
  • Recommended Capabilities
  • General Recommendations and Considerations
  • Summary—Recommendations for Volcano Levels 1–4 Seismic Networks
  • References Cited
Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Numbered Series
Title Seismic techniques and suggested instrumentation to monitor volcanoes
Series title Scientific Investigations Report
Series number 2024-5062
Chapter B
DOI 10.3133/sir20245062B
Year Published 2024
Language English
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Publisher location Reston, VA
Contributing office(s) Volcano Science Center
Description iii, 9 p.
Online Only (Y/N) N
Google Analytic Metrics Metrics page
Additional publication details