Geothermal point sources identified in a fumarolic ice cave on Erebus volcano, Antarctica using fiber optic distributed temperature sensing

Degassing of CO2 on the flanks of the active Erebus volcano is thought to occur mainly through fumarolic ice caves (FIC) and associated fumarolic ice towers. There is alsom minor CO2 degassing from isolated areas of warm ground. The mechanism supplying heat and CO2 gas into the FIC is poorly understood. To investigate this system, a fiber optic distributed temperature sensing (DTS) system was deployed in a FIC to obtain temperature measurements every meter. The DTS data reveal that localized gas vents (GV) supply heat to the FIC air mass and are an important component of the FIC microclimate. FIC temperature is anti‐correlated with local atmospheric pressure, indicating barometric pumping of the GV. These results enable the use of FIC temperature as a proxy for flank degassing rate on Erebus, and represent the first application of DTS for monitoring an active volcano.

Raw project data is available by contacting [e-mail]

在活跃的厄尔布斯火山斜坡上，二氧化碳的脱气过程据信主要发生通过气孔冰洞（FIC）及其相关的气孔冰塔。此外，温暖地面孤立区域也有少量二氧化碳的脱气现象。向FIC输送热量和二氧化碳气体的机制尚不明确。为了研究这一系统，我们在一个FIC中部署了光纤分布式温度传感（DTS）系统，以每米为单位获取温度测量数据。DTS数据显示，局部气体喷口（GV）为FIC气团提供热量，并且是FIC微气候的重要组成成分。FIC的温度与当地大气压力呈反比，表明GV存在气压泵送现象。这些结果使得可以使用FIC的温度作为厄尔布斯火山斜坡脱气速率的替代指标，并且代表了DTS在监测活跃火山领域的首次应用。

原始项目数据可通过联系[e-mail]获取。