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Understanding shallow magma rheology and eruption dynamics at Volcán de Fuego, Guatemala

Amelia Bain 1,4, Jackie Kendrick1, Anthony Lamur1, Yan Lavallée1, Gustavo Chigna2, Roberto Mérida2, Carla Chun3, Amilcar Roca Palma2, Andrew Bell4, Silvio De Angelis5, Eliza Calder4, Rüdiger Escobar Wolf6, Fabrizio Ponce2

  • Affiliations: 1Ludwig-Maximilians-Universtität (LMU), München, Germany; 2Instituto Nacional de Sismología, Vulcanología, Meteorología e Hidrología (INSIVUMEH), Guatemala City, Guatemala; 3Universidad Mariano Gálvez, Guatemala City, Guatemala; 4University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom; 5University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom; 6Michigan Technological University, Houghton (Michigan), USA

  • Presentation type: Poster

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

  • Poster Board Number: 121

  • Programme No: 3.15.26

  • Theme 3 > Session 15

Abstract

Volcán de Fuego, Guatemala, is a densely populated persistently active stratovolcano, with over 50,000 people living within 10 km of the crater. Recent activity has been characterised by low-level Strombolian to Vulcanian explosive activity, effusive phases, and paroxysmal eruptions. The volcano is monitored by INSIVUMEH using a network of seismic and acoustic instruments, web cameras, satellite observations, along with daily reports from three local observers. The greatest hazard is related to the frequent occurrence of pyroclastic flows during paroxysms, therefore it is crucial to understand the magma properties and pre- and syn-eruptive processes associated with these intense explosive events, as well as the background activity. There is a notable dearth of published data on the rheology of the basaltic to basaltic andesite magmas erupted at Fuego -- the high level of volcanic activity and steep slopes represent significant barriers to sample collection. Here, we report the results of high-temperature deformation experiments on a suite of samples collected from the Las Lajas and Cenizas channels in August 2023. Although these samples cannot be tied to a precise eruption date, they are fresh in appearance, cover the range of crystallinity and vesicularity observed in the field, and are assumed to be reasonably representative of the recent range of activity at Fuego (i.e. approximately 5 years prior to collection). We discuss the rheology results in the context of crystal micro-textures and seismic monitoring data to gain insights into shallow volcanic processes and eruption dynamics at Fuego.