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Manam Volcano News and Eruption Updates (New Guinea):

How is drone technology improving our understanding of future volcanism?

Aerial observations of Manam, Papua New Guinea (Image: Lui et al. 2020)

Improved early warning systems are key to minimizing loss of life and effectively planning volcanic emergencies. Typically, volcanologists use seismic monitoring as the primary indicator of impending volcanic activity. As technology advances, volcanologists are exploring alternative early warning methods.

A better understanding of the chemistry within a volcanic plume and clues to future eruptions that may be contained within can lead to more accurate predictions of future volcanism.

Adapted drones, equipped with gas sensors and cameras, could be the answer and a study recently published in Advances in science, led by Dr Emma Lui (University College London), investigates how aerial measurements of volcanic gases using unoccupied aerial systems (drones) transform our ability to measure and monitor plumes from a distance, while also gaining greater knowledge about global volatile flows from volcanoes.

Aerial robotic strategies using drone technology are changing the landscape of volcanological research and monitoring, contributing to accurate and repeatable data at spatial resolutions that often exceed terrestrial or space equivalents, as well as being more affordable than aircraft alternatives with crew.

The research for this study was conducted on a small volcanic island off the northeastern coast of Papua New Guinea. Manam has two active vents simultaneously and is one of the most active volcanoes in Papua New Guinea. Since the beginning of historical records it has been characterized by persistent passive outgassing and intermittent Strombolian activity, punctuated by subplinian paroxysmal eruptions on sub-decadal time scales. It is currently ranked among the strongest sources of volcanic emissions globally and, with a carbon dioxide emission rate of ~ 1 Mt CO2 / year between 2005 and 2015, Manam is among the most significant currently active sources of volcanic carbon. , so it was an appropriate study location for this research by Lui et al. (2020).

The volcano’s close flyovers were completed in October 2018 and May 2019: an abundance of geochemical data was obtained including carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and hydrogen sulfide concentrations, flow rates and carbon isotope compositions via isotope analysis of plume samples. The results indicated outgassing in the volcano’s southern crater between October 2018 and May 2019, a probable precursor to an eruption. A month later, the Manam volcano exploded.

Improving the ability to remotely measure and monitor volcanic plumes will have transformative consequences for the quantification of global volatile budgets and for our understanding of volcanic plume dynamics and chemistry more generally. Advances in drone technology within modern volcanology may translate into tangible monitoring strategies that could help identify future precursor changes in volcanic activity in remote and inaccessible volcanic systems.

However, this study warns that volcanic emissions alone are not a reliable indicator of impending volcanism – they should be used collectively with other accurate measurements and observations.

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