Where is the magma at Axial Seamount? And when will it erupt next?

Axial Seamount is an active submarine volcano located ~500 km offshore Oregon, USA. Axial is a basaltic hotspot volcano superimposed on the Juan de Fuca spreading ridge, it has a 3x8 km summit caldera with a floor at 1500 m depth, it has erupted 3 times in the last 30 years, and it is currently continuously monitored by the OOI-RCA cabled observatory. This talk will try to resolve an apparent discrepancy between geodetic observations at Axial, which clearly show the maximum inflation and deflation signals at the center of the summit caldera, versus the results of a 3D seismic survey in 2019 (being processed at IPGP) showing that the most melt-rich areas are located outside the caldera. In addition, the latest OOI-RCA monitoring data will be reviewed in the context of trying to forecast when the next eruption might occur.



-[ This seminar will also be available on Zoom: https://u-paris.zoom.us/j/86114433294?pwd=QZbBrfPd15b5Ae8wYBCkVxFYVs1lCy.1 ]-