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Challenges and solutions in geodetic monitoring of submerged volcanoes in shallow waters: the Campi Flegrei case study

Sergio Guardato1, Rosario Riccio 1, Francesco Chierici 2, Giovanni Macedonio1, Giovanni Iannaccone1

  • Affiliations:  1Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Osservatorio Vesuviano, Napoli, Italy; 2Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica, Istituto di Radioastronomia, Bologna, Italy 

  • Presentation type: Poster

  • Presentation time: Friday 16:30 - 18:00, Room Poster Hall

  • Poster Board Number: 42

  • Programme No: 2.3.28

  • Theme 2 > Session 3

Abstract

In coastal areas characterized by limited sea depths, various factors make it challenging to conduct measurements using permanent seafloor instrumentation. These include: 1) significant biological growth on the instruments, which can alter their functionality after just a few months (this requires periodic recovery and repositioning of the instruments near their original location); 2) fishing activities that can displace or even remove the equipment; 3) high variability in the physical properties of the water column. These challenges make it difficult to apply standard marine geodesy techniques, which primarily rely on acoustic methodologies. Consequently, new methodologies have been developed to monitor seabed deformations in the Campi Flegrei area. To this end, a permanent infrastructure for geophysical monitoring of volcanic activity in the Campi Flegrei marine sector (Gulf of Pozzuoli) has been installed, consisting of four buoys. Various methodologies are used for geodetic monitoring, including precision pressure measurements at the seabed near each buoy, sea level measurements via a tide gauge on one buoy, and GPS receivers mounted on top of each buoy. Each of these sensors has been operating continuously from 2016, contributing to the definition of the ground deformation field in the Gulf of Pozzuoli. The presentation will discuss the main techniques for measuring seafloor ground deformation, the solutions implemented in the Campi Flegrei area, and the results obtained over nine years of continuous measurements in the region, as well as future developments.