According to research done by the Alaska Volcano Observatory, magma beneath Mount Edgecumbe volcano in Southeast Alaska has been moving upward through the Earth's crust.
A new approach at the observatory could lead to earlier detection of volcanic unrest.
Satellite imagery shows that the magma is rising to about 6 miles from a depth of about 12 miles and has caused earthquakes.
The research paper's lead author, Ronni Grapenthin, is an associate professor of geodesy at the University of Alaska.
The activity at Edgecumbe is unusual because reactivation of dormant volcanic systems is very rare.
An eruption is not imminent.
The findings were published in the journal in October.
The Alaska Volcano Observatory collaborated with the Alaska Satellite Facility to process data in the cloud for the first time. A researcher doesn't have to download and sort data to process it if they use cloud computing because it uses remote server to store and provide computing services.
The research team started work after a swarm of earthquakes at Mount Edgecumbe. The researchers looked at the previous 7.5 years of ground changes.
The team found a cause for the earthquakes four days later. There were a small number of earthquakes under Edgecumbe in 2020.
The initial finding was confirmed by additional data processing. Less than two weeks after the Edgecumbe earthquakes were reported, the Alaska Volcano Observatory told the public.
The Alaska Volcano Observatory's coordinating scientist said that new streamlined cloud-based workflows cut weeks or months of analysis down to just days.
Kruzof Island is on the west side of Sitka Sound. The Mount Edgecumbe Volcanic Field contains the domes and crater of nearby Crater Ridge.
The southern part of Kruzof Island is centered 1.5 miles east of the volcano. The upward change began abruptly in August of last year and continued at a rate of 3.4 inches per year for a total of over 10 inches through early 2022.
The cause was the intrusion of new magma.
Ground deformation is one of the earliest indicators of volcanic unrest. Ground shaking is a key symptom to watch.
The observatory is applying a new approach to other volcanos in Alaska. There are signs that the volcano is unresting.
There are no signs of an imminent eruption at Mount Edgecumbe.
He said that the intrusion has been going on for three years. More signs of unrest are expected prior to an eruption.
The researchers think the magma is going to reach the upper chamber through a conduit. The thick magma in the upper chamber precludes the magma from moving further up.
The entire surface is being pushed up.
There is a population of about 8,500 people in Mount Edgecumbe.
The last eruption of the volcano was 800 to 900 years ago. According to the account, a group of Tlingits in four canoes camped on the coast about 15 or 20 miles south of the smoke. A group of people in a canoe were sent to investigate the smoke and see if there was fire or smoke.
The chief scientist of the Alaska Satellite Facility is one of the people involved in the research.
The Alaska Volcano Observatory is a program of several agencies.
More information: Ronni Grapenthin et al, Return from Dormancy: Rapid inflation and seismic unrest driven by transcrustal magma transfer at Mt. Edgecumbe (L'úx Shaa) Volcano, Alaska, Geophysical Research Letters (2022). DOI: 10.1029/2022GL099464 Journal information: Geophysical Research Letters
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