One third of the world’s volcanic gases come from the volcanoes of Melanesia.
One of our gas-collecting drones over a lava lake in Marum crater, Ambrym volcano, Vanuatu
VOLCANIC GASES
Volcanic gases and aerosols are emitted in plumes from active volcanoes, even when they’re not erupting. These emissions are important parts of the global geochemical cycle and drive long-term evolution of our atmosphere, but emissions from most volcanoes have never been studied. Data exist for only a handful of volcanoes on land, and are virtually non-existent for the countless submarine volcanoes of the world’s oceans.
Melanesia
The volcanoes of Melanesia (Vanuatu - Solomon Islands - Papua New Guinea) occupy an intensely active – but perilously under studied – segment of the Pacific Ring of Fire. Eruptions regularly threaten the health and livelihoods of people living in these countries. Regional emissions are staggering: terrestrial Melanesian volcanoes collectively emit one third of the world’s volcanic gases, and the region also has at least five submarine volcanoes that are completely unmonitored. Our work will help identify hazards, and help us understand how this relatively small area is having a disproportionately large influence on our atmosphere and oceans.
Most of what we know about Melanesian volcanoes comes from satellite-derived measurements of sulphur dioxide gas (SO2). This map (modified from the paper by Carn et al., 2017) shows the intense SO2 emissions from Melanesia over the last decade, and all of our target volcanoes.
The summit crater of Ulawun (PNG), just a few days after the recent explosive eruption. Photo by RVO.
The Project
Starting in 2020, we will measure gas fluxes, compositions and isotopic signatures, and aerosol fluxes and chemistry, at all 21 active Melanesian volcanoes. To overcome difficulty of access to remote islands and submarine volcanoes, we will work with Māori and Melanesian voyaging societies to integrate state-of-the-art volcanologic tools into traditional double-hulled sailing canoes (“waka” or “vaka”). We will test our systems close to home at New Zealand’s White Island – Whakaari, and then embark on a series of epic expeditions in Melanesia.