The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event
Abstract The first recorded volcanic eruption in Antarctica occurred on Bridgeman Island (South Shetland Islands) in early 1821, < 2 years after Antarctica was discovered. However, the observations were disputed owing to a lack of physical evidence. A consensus arose that they probably referred t...
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s0954102023000111 2024-03-03T08:38:25+00:00 The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event Smellie, John L. Kraus, Stefan Williams, Karen 2023 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0954102023000111 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0954102023000111 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Antarctic Science volume 35, issue 4, page 283-298 ISSN 0954-1020 1365-2079 Geology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Oceanography journal-article 2023 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/s0954102023000111 2024-02-08T08:36:44Z Abstract The first recorded volcanic eruption in Antarctica occurred on Bridgeman Island (South Shetland Islands) in early 1821, < 2 years after Antarctica was discovered. However, the observations were disputed owing to a lack of physical evidence. A consensus arose that they probably referred to Penguin Island, a young volcano with a well-formed volcanic cone situated just 60 km to the west. However, a recent re-examination of the historical reports demonstrated that the event was undoubtedly located at Bridgeman Island. Our new study demonstrates that the eruption was explosive and lasted throughout 1821. The vent was situated in the sea ~500 m to the west of Bridgeman Island and the eruption was hydrovolcanic (Surtseyan). The new volcano constructed a tuff ring composed of unconsolidated lapilli and ash, which rapidly coalesced with nearby Bridgeman Island, similar to how the Capelinhos volcano joined with neighbouring Faial (Azores) in 1957–1958. The tuff ring had a very low profile and was rapidly removed by marine erosion. However, fumarolic activity persisted for a few decades. Because the eruption is only 200 years old, the underlying volcanic construct (Bridgeman Rise) should be regarded as dormant rather than extinct. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Science Antarctica Bridgeman Island Penguin Island South Shetland Islands Cambridge University Press South Shetland Islands Penguin Island ENVELOPE(-57.926,-57.926,-62.102,-62.102) Bridgeman ENVELOPE(-56.733,-56.733,-62.067,-62.067) Bridgeman Island ENVELOPE(-56.712,-56.712,-62.064,-62.064) Antarctic Science 35 4 283 298 |
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Cambridge University Press |
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language |
English |
topic |
Geology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Oceanography |
spellingShingle |
Geology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Oceanography Smellie, John L. Kraus, Stefan Williams, Karen The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event |
topic_facet |
Geology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Oceanography |
description |
Abstract The first recorded volcanic eruption in Antarctica occurred on Bridgeman Island (South Shetland Islands) in early 1821, < 2 years after Antarctica was discovered. However, the observations were disputed owing to a lack of physical evidence. A consensus arose that they probably referred to Penguin Island, a young volcano with a well-formed volcanic cone situated just 60 km to the west. However, a recent re-examination of the historical reports demonstrated that the event was undoubtedly located at Bridgeman Island. Our new study demonstrates that the eruption was explosive and lasted throughout 1821. The vent was situated in the sea ~500 m to the west of Bridgeman Island and the eruption was hydrovolcanic (Surtseyan). The new volcano constructed a tuff ring composed of unconsolidated lapilli and ash, which rapidly coalesced with nearby Bridgeman Island, similar to how the Capelinhos volcano joined with neighbouring Faial (Azores) in 1957–1958. The tuff ring had a very low profile and was rapidly removed by marine erosion. However, fumarolic activity persisted for a few decades. Because the eruption is only 200 years old, the underlying volcanic construct (Bridgeman Rise) should be regarded as dormant rather than extinct. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Smellie, John L. Kraus, Stefan Williams, Karen |
author_facet |
Smellie, John L. Kraus, Stefan Williams, Karen |
author_sort |
Smellie, John L. |
title |
The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event |
title_short |
The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event |
title_full |
The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event |
title_fullStr |
The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event |
title_full_unstemmed |
The 1821 eruption of Bridgeman Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: an observed Capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event |
title_sort |
1821 eruption of bridgeman island, south shetland islands, antarctica: an observed capelinhos-style hydrovolcanic event |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0954102023000111 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0954102023000111 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-57.926,-57.926,-62.102,-62.102) ENVELOPE(-56.733,-56.733,-62.067,-62.067) ENVELOPE(-56.712,-56.712,-62.064,-62.064) |
geographic |
South Shetland Islands Penguin Island Bridgeman Bridgeman Island |
geographic_facet |
South Shetland Islands Penguin Island Bridgeman Bridgeman Island |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Science Antarctica Bridgeman Island Penguin Island South Shetland Islands |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Science Antarctica Bridgeman Island Penguin Island South Shetland Islands |
op_source |
Antarctic Science volume 35, issue 4, page 283-298 ISSN 0954-1020 1365-2079 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/s0954102023000111 |
container_title |
Antarctic Science |
container_volume |
35 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
283 |
op_container_end_page |
298 |
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1792506795507318784 |