Ebook: Lava Flows and Domes: Emplacement Mechanisms and Hazard Implications

This collection of papers is based on a symposium held in 1987 at the Interna­ tional Union of Geology and Geodesy Congress in Vancouver, British Colum­ bia. The Symposium was planned as a follow-up to a session at the 1984 Geo­ logical Society of America Annual Meeting in Reno, Nevada, which dealt with the emplacement of silicic lava domes. In both cases, emphasis was placed on the physical and mechanical rather than chemical aspects of lava flow. The IUGG Symposium consisted of two lecture sessions, a poster session, and two discussion periods, and had 22 participants. The contributions to this volume are all based on papers presented in the various parts of the Sym­ posium. The motivation for studying lava flow mechanics is both practical and scientific. Scientists and government agencies seek to more effectively predict the hazards associated with active lavas. Recovering mineral resources found in lava flows and domes also requires an understanding of their emplacement. From a more theoretical standpoint, petrologists view lava studies as a way to directly observe the rheologic consequences of mixing crystals, bubbles, and solid blocks of country rock with silicate liquids. This information can then be used to constrain processes occurring in the concealed conduits, dikes, and chambers that feed flows and domes on the surface.

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This book is a timely collection of nine papers concerned with the emplacement of silicic domes and mafic lava flows. The authors have utilized a combination of field, experimental, and theoretical methods to constrain various characteristics of recently-emplaced lavas, including dimensions, growth rates, surface morphology, deformation styles, rheology, and volatile contents. The studies take advantage of new, detailed field measurements from numerous volcanoes, with an emphasis on data from Mount St. Helens. Such investigations will be of value to geologists responsible for evaluating hazards, geothermal resources, and volcanogenic ore deposits. They will also be of interest to planetary geologists involved in the remote interpretation of volcanic products and petrologists assessing the rheology of magmas.