MessageToEagle.com - The only places where mid-ocean ridges appear above sea level are Ethiopia and Iceland.
Two new studies into the so-called “plumbing systems” that lie under volcanoes could bring scientists closer to predicting large eruptions
and reveal new information about where magma is stored and how it moves through the geological plumbing network.
Finding out where magma chambers lie and how they behave can help identify early warning signs of impending eruptions.
International teams of researchers, led by the University of Leeds, studied the location and behaviour of magma chambers
on the Earth's mid-ocean ridge system - a vast chain of volcanoes along which the Earth forms new crust.
Volcanic ridges (or "spreading centres") occur when tectonic plates "rift" or pull apart. Magma (hot molten rock)
injects itself into weaknesses in the brittle upper crust, erupting as lava and forming new crust upon cooling.
Magma chambers work like plumbing systems, channelling pressurised magma through networks of underground "pipes".
Scientists used images taken by the European Space Agency satellite Envisat to measure how the ground moved
before, during and after eruptions. Using this data, they built and tested computer models to find out
how rifting occurs.
Data in one study showed magma chambers that fed an eruption in November 2008 in the Afar rift of
Northern Ethiopia were only about 1 km below the ground. The standard model had predicted a depth of more than 3 km.
Erta Ale lava lake. Photo credit: James Hammond
It is highly unusual for magma chambers to lie in shallow depths on slow spreading centres such as the Afar rift,
where tectonic plates pull apart at about the same speed as human fingernails grow.
Dr Carolina Pagli from the University of Leeds' School of Earth and Environment, who led the study, says:
"It was a complete surprise to see that a magma chamber could exist so close to the Earth's surface in an area
where the tectonic plates move apart so slowly. The results have changed the way we think about volcanoes."
Dr Pagli also noticed that the ground started "uplifting" (elevating) four months before the eruption, due to new
magma increasing pressure in one of the underground chambers. Understanding these precursory signals is fundamental
to predicting eruptions.
A wider study of eruptions in Afar and Iceland, two vastly different environments, found remarkable similarities.
Many events occurred within a short space of time. Researchers identified multiple magma chambers positioned
horizontally and vertically, allowing magma to shoot in several directions. Moving magma triggered earthquakes,
and separate magma chambers fed single eruptions.
The 2008 eruption is part of an unusual period of recent volcanic unrest in Ethiopia, and is enabling scientists to
learn more about volcanoes at spreading centres. Most spreading centres are under 2 km of water at the bottom of the
ocean, making detailed observations extremely challenging. The new knowledge derived from Ethiopian volcanoes will
help scientists understand volcanoes in Iceland, where eruptions can have a bigger impact on the UK.
Dr Tim Wright from the School of Earth and Environment, who leads the international Afar Rift Consortium,
said: "The dramatic events we have been witnessing in Afar in the past six years are transforming our understanding
of how the crust grows when tectonic plates pull apart. Our work in one of the hottest place on Earth is having
a direct impact on our understanding of eruptions from the frozen volcanoes of Iceland."
The studies, published in Nature Geoscience, were funded by the UK Natural Environment Research Council through the Afar
Rift Consortium, the National Centre for Earth Observation, the US National Science Foundation, the UK Royal Society, and the
Icelandic Research Fund.
Follow MessageToEagle.com for the latest news on Facebook
and Twitter !
Recommend this article:
Extreme Life In Tough Environment Of Hot Earth Without Oxygen
Once upon a time, Earth was still a hot, violent place at this time, with volcanic activity dominating the early Earth. The sky was cloudy and grey,
keeping the heat in despite the sun being weaker than today.
The water temperature of the oceans was much higher at 40-50 degrees (the temperature of a hot bath) and circulating currents were very strong.
Antarctica's Mysterious Lake Untersee And Its Otherworldly Ecosystem
A research team has now returned to Lake Untersee to begin the first real studies of this incredible environment.
This new high-quality image details the conical stromatolites that have formed on top of a boulder at a depth of about 20 meters, other
cones can be seen populating the sloping bottom...
Solar Tornadoes As Wide As Five Earths Discovered
Solar tornadoes several times as wide as the Earth can be generated in the solar atmosphere, say researchers in the UK.
"This is perhaps the first time that such a huge solar tornado is filmed by an imager. Previously much smaller solar
tornadoes were found my SOHO satellite. But they were not filmed," says Dr. Xing Li, of Aberystwyth University.
Living Earth Simulator - Supercomputer Predicting The Future
In Douglas Adams book the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy we encounter a machine called Deep Thought. It is the most powerful computer ever built. Deep Thought is capable of answering questions
concerning life, the Universe, and simply everything. Now scientists are planning to create a similar machine. It is called the Living Earth Simulator (LES).
New Evidence Links Earth's Extreme Weather To Human-Caused Global Warming
The past decade has been one of unprecedented weather extremes. Scientists of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany argue that the high incidence of extremes is not merely accidental.
From the many single events a pattern emerges. At least for extreme rainfall and heat waves the link with human-caused global warming is clear...
Though the universe is filled with billions upon billions of stars, the discovery of a single variable star in 1923 altered the
course of modern astronomy. And, at least one famous astronomer of the time lamented that the discovery had shattered his world view.
Bright Star In The Constellation Lyra Is Cooler Than The Human Body
The coldest class of stars have temperatures as cool as the human body.
Astronomers hunted these dark orbs, termed Y dwarfs, for more than a decade without success.
When viewed with a visible-light telescope, they are nearly impossible to see.
Thermonuclear Burning In A Neutron Star Detected For The First Time!
It's a very important discovery!
For the first time, an international team of scientists have detected all phases of thermonuclear burning in a
neutron star, located close to the center of the galaxy in the globular cluster Terzan 5.
Astronomical Mystery - Tremendous Explosion And Appearance Of Odd Rings
Twenty five years ago, on 1987 February 23, the brightest supernova of modern times was observed in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
The collision occurred at speeds near 60 million kilometers per hour and shock-heats the ring material causing it to glow.
Over time, astronomers have watched and waited for the expanding debris from this tremendous stellar explosion to crash into previously expelled material...
MessageToEagle.com - The only places where mid-ocean ridges appear above sea level are Ethiopia and Iceland.
Once upon a time, Earth was still a hot, violent place at this time, with volcanic activity dominating the early Earth. The sky was cloudy and grey,
keeping the heat in despite the sun being weaker than today.
The water temperature of the oceans was much higher at 40-50 degrees (the temperature of a hot bath) and circulating currents were very strong.
Where did our planet come from?
We already know that 
A research team has now returned to Lake Untersee to begin the first real studies of this incredible environment.
This new high-quality image details the conical stromatolites that have formed on top of a boulder at a depth of about 20 meters, other
cones can be seen populating the sloping bottom...
Solar tornadoes several times as wide as the Earth can be generated in the solar atmosphere, say researchers in the UK.
"This is perhaps the first time that such a huge solar tornado is filmed by an imager. Previously much smaller solar
tornadoes were found my SOHO satellite. But they were not filmed," says Dr. Xing Li, of Aberystwyth University.
Just recently scientists announced they found
In Douglas Adams book the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy we encounter a machine called Deep Thought. It is the most powerful computer ever built. Deep Thought is capable of answering questions
concerning life, the Universe, and simply everything. Now scientists are planning to create a similar machine. It is called the Living Earth Simulator (LES).
The past decade has been one of unprecedented weather extremes. Scientists of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany argue that the high incidence of extremes is not merely accidental.
From the many single events a pattern emerges. At least for extreme rainfall and heat waves the link with human-caused global warming is clear...
Though the universe is filled with billions upon billions of stars, the discovery of a single variable star in 1923 altered the
course of modern astronomy. And, at least one famous astronomer of the time lamented that the discovery had shattered his world view.
The coldest class of stars have temperatures as cool as the human body.
Astronomers hunted these dark orbs, termed Y dwarfs, for more than a decade without success.
When viewed with a visible-light telescope, they are nearly impossible to see.
It's a very important discovery!
For the first time, an international team of scientists have detected all phases of thermonuclear burning in a
neutron star, located close to the center of the galaxy in the globular cluster Terzan 5.
Twenty five years ago, on 1987 February 23, the brightest supernova of modern times was observed in the Large Magellanic Cloud.