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  • Extended SO2 outgassing fro...
    Simmons, Isla C.; Pfeffer, Melissa A.; Calder, Eliza S.; Galle, Bo; Arellano, Santiago; Coppola, Diego; Barsotti, Sara

    Bulletin of volcanology, 11/2017, Volume: 79, Issue: 11
    Journal Article

    The 2014–2015 Holuhraun eruption was the largest fissure eruption in Iceland in the last 200 years. This flood basalt eruption produced ~ 1.6 km 3 of lava, forming a lava flow field covering an area of ~ 84 km 2 . Over the 6-month course of the eruption, ~ 11 Mt of SO 2 were released from the eruptive vents as well as from the cooling lava flow field. This work examines the post-eruption SO 2 flux emitted by the Holuhraun lava flow field, providing the first study of the extent and relative importance of the outgassing of a lava flow field after emplacement. We use data from a scanning differential optical absorption spectroscopy (DOAS) instrument installed at the eruption site to monitor the flux of SO 2 . In this study, we propose a new method to estimate the SO 2 emissions from the lava flow field, based on the characteristic shape of the scanned column density distribution of a homogenous source close to the ground. Post-eruption outgassing of the lava flow field continued for at least 3 months after the end of the eruption, with SO 2 flux between < 1 and 9 kg/s. The lava flow field post-eruption emissions were not a significant contributor to the total SO 2 released during the eruption; however, the lava flow field was still an important polluter and caused high concentrations of SO 2 at ground level after lava effusion ceased.