Evidence of a Shallow Magma Reservoir Beneath Askja Caldera, Iceland, From Body Wave Tomography

Abstract In August 2021, Askja caldera switched to reinflation following ∼40 years of continuous deflation that was first measured some 20 years after its last eruption in 1961. Various lines of evidence, including from geodetic modeling, suggest that both the deflation and reinflation events are re...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Geophysical Research Letters
Main Authors: J. Han, N. Rawlinson, T. Greenfield, R. S. White, B. Brandsdóttir, T. Winder, V. Drouin
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL107851
https://doaj.org/article/dd54331a80a443cba2ebf649b43a2b53
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Summary:Abstract In August 2021, Askja caldera switched to reinflation following ∼40 years of continuous deflation that was first measured some 20 years after its last eruption in 1961. Various lines of evidence, including from geodetic modeling, suggest that both the deflation and reinflation events are related to a shallow magma body. To better understand the subsurface plumbing system, we derive P‐wave velocity (Vp), S‐wave velocity (Vs), and Vp/Vs models of the mid‐upper crust by leveraging a new local earthquake traveltime data set. A cylindrical low‐velocity zone, ∼3 km wide and extending to ∼8 km below sea level (bsl), was imaged beneath the caldera. Within it, two distinct lower velocity and higher Vp/Vs anomalies are illuminated, one centered at ∼0.5 km and the other at ∼6 km bsl. The shallower anomaly lies directly beneath the zone of uplift and is likely associated with the current reinflation event.