Cascading events during the 1650 tsunamigenic eruption of Kolumbo volcano

Volcanic eruptions can trigger tsunamis, which may cause significant damage to coastal communities and infrastructure. Tsunami generation during volcanic eruptions is complex and often due to a combination of processes. The 1650 eruption of the Kolumbo submarine volcano triggered a tsunami causing m...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature communications 2023-10, Vol.14 (1), p.6606-6606, Article 6606
Main Authors: Karstens, Jens, Crutchley, Gareth J., Hansteen, Thor H., Preine, Jonas, Carey, Steven, Elger, Judith, Kühn, Michel, Nomikou, Paraskevi, Schmid, Florian, Dalla Valle, Giacomo, Kelfoun, Karim, Berndt, Christian
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
704/2151/2809
704/4111
Catastrophic events
Earthquake damage
Emergency warning programs
Eruptions
Hazard assessment
Humanities and Social Sciences
Magma
multidisciplinary
Pressure reduction
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Sciences of the Universe
Submarine volcanoes
Tsunamis
Volcanic activity
Volcanic eruptions
Volcanoes
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Summary:Volcanic eruptions can trigger tsunamis, which may cause significant damage to coastal communities and infrastructure. Tsunami generation during volcanic eruptions is complex and often due to a combination of processes. The 1650 eruption of the Kolumbo submarine volcano triggered a tsunami causing major destruction on surrounding islands in the Aegean Sea. However, the source mechanisms behind the tsunami have been disputed due to difficulties in sampling and imaging submarine volcanoes. Here we show, based on three-dimensional seismic data, that ~1.2 km³ of Kolumbo’s northwestern flank moved 500–1000 m downslope along a basal detachment surface. This movement is consistent with depressurization of the magma feeding system, causing a catastrophic explosion. Numerical tsunami simulations indicate that only the combination of flank movement followed by an explosive eruption can explain historical eyewitness accounts. This cascading sequence of natural hazards suggests that assessing submarine flank movements is critical for early warning of volcanogenic tsunamis. Three-dimensional seismic data is used to reconstruct the flank collapse of Kolombo volcano in 1650, which led to a catastrophic tsunami event.
ISSN:2041-1723
2041-1723
DOI:10.1038/s41467-023-42261-y