[1] Steam explosions, or littoral blasts, generated when pyroclastic flows interact with seawater may be a common, although rarely documented, phenomena. The development of steam explosions rather than passive steam production is related to the rate of thermal energy transfer from hot pyroclasts to water. We conduct a series of laboratory experiments to quantify the heat transfer and steam prod...

Introduction The Aristarchus Plateau (Figure 1) is a distinctive, geologically complex volcanic highland in northern Oceanus Procellarum. It is roughly diamond shaped, 170 by 220 km across, and up to 2 km higher than the surrounding mare [1, 2]. The roughly linear edges of the plateau suggest that it is fault bounded. The plateau edges are essentially radial and concentric to the center of the ...

BACKGROUND The Soufriere Hills, a stratovolcano on Montserrat, started erupting in July 1995, producing volcanic ash, both from dome collapse pyroclastic flows and phreatic explosions. The eruptions/ash resuspension result in high concentrations of suspended particulate matter in the atmosphere, which includes cristobalite, a mineral implicated in respiratory disorders. AIMS To conduct toxico...

An exploratory hole UE25a-1) was drilled at Nevada Test Site NTS) to determine the suitability of pyroclastic deposits as storage sites for radioactive waste. Studies have been conducted to investigate the stratigraphy, structure, mineralogy, petrology, and physical properties of the tuff units encountered in the drill hole. This report deals with the interpretation of physical properties for t...

Multiple volcanic eruptions occurred between 8500 and 9000 yr. B.P. from the central crater of CitiaitCpetl Volcano generating a series of pyroclastic flows that formed a deposit with a total volume of about 0.26 km3 (D.R.E.). The flows descended in all directions around the crater, but they were mostly controlled by topography and deposited in valleys or local topographic depressions up to abo...

The pyroclastic aggregate concrete of Trajan's Markets (110 CE), now Museo Fori Imperiali in Rome, has absorbed energy from seismic ground shaking and long-term foundation settlement for nearly two millenia while remaining largely intact at the structural scale. The scientific basis of this exceptional service record is explored through computed tomography of fracture surfaces and synchroton X-...

Understanding the mechanisms that govern ash aggregation is of critical importance in volcanology. Aggregation reduces the residence time of ash (≤2 mm) in the atmosphere strongly, by enhancing the sedimentation of finer-grained material generated during explosive eruptions. To date, experimental studies have focused on the expectation that water provides the strongest bonds between particles t...

Nyos maar is located in the Cameroon Volcanic Line and generates a multitude of primary and secondary hazards to the local population. For risk assessment and hazard mitigation, the age of the Nyos maar eruption provides some vital information. Since previous dating efforts using a range of techniques resulted in vastly varying eruption ages, we applied thermoluminescence (TL) methods to obtain...