@inproceedings{PieriDiazBlandetal.2014, author = {Pieri, D. C. and Diaz, J. A. and Bland, G. and Fladeland, M. M. and Abtahi, A. and Alan, A. Jr. and Alegria, O. and Azofeifa, S. and Berthold, R. and Corrales, E. and Fuerstenau, S. and Gerardi, J. and Herlth, D. and Hickman, G. and Hunter, G. and Linick, J. and Mardigal, Y. and Makel, D. and Miles, T. and Realmuto, V. J. and Storms, B. and Vogel, A. and Kolyer, R. and Weber, Konradin}, title = {Systematic observations of Volc{\´a}n Turrialba, Costa Rica, with small unmanned aircraft and aerostats (UAVs): the Costa Rican Airborne Research and Technology Applications (CARTA) missions [Abstract]}, series = {American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2014}, booktitle = {American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2014}, year = {2014}, abstract = {For several years, the University of Costa Rica, NASA Centers (e.g., JPL, ARC, GSFC/WFF, GRC) \& NASA contractors-partners have made regular in situ measurements of aerosols \& gases at Turrialba Volcano in Costa Rica, with aerostats (e.g., tethered balloons \& kites), \& free-flying fixed wing UAVs (e.g., Dragon Eye, Vector Wing 100, DELTA 150), at altitudes up to 12.5Kft ASL within 5km of the summit. Onboard instruments included gas detectors (e.g., SO2, CO2), visible \& thermal IR cameras, air samplers, temperature pressure \& humidity sensors, particle counters, \& a nephelometer. Deployments are timed to support bimonthly overflights of the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) onboard the NASA Terra satellite (26 deployments to date). In situ observations of dilute plume SO2 concentrations (~1-20ppmv), plume dimensions, and associated temperature, pressure, \& humidity profiles, validate detailed radiative transfer-based SO2 retrievals, as well as archive-wide ASTER band-ratio SO2 algorithms. Our recent UAV-based CO2 observations confirm high concentrations (e.g., ~3000ppmv max at summit jet), with 1000-1500ppmv flank values, and essentially global background CO2 levels (400ppmv) over distal surroundings. Transient Turrialba He detections (up to 20ppmv) were obtained with a small (~10kg) airborne mass spectrometer on a light aircraft—a UAV version (~3kg) will deploy there soon on the UCR DELTA 500. Thus, these platforms, though small (most payloads <500gm), can perform valuable systematic measurements of potential eruption hazards, as well as of volcano processes. Because they are economical, flexible, and effective, such platforms promise unprecedented capabilities for researchers and responders throughout Central and South America, undertaking volcanic data acquisitions uniquely suited to such small aircraft in close proximity to known hazards, or that were previously only available using full-sized manned aircraft. This work was carried out, in part, at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology under NASA contract. We are grateful to the Universidad de Costa Rica, the NASA Airborne Science and Earth Surface \& Interior Programs, the Direcci{\´o}n General de Aeron{\´a}utica Civil de Costa Rica, and FH D{\"u}sseldorf for their support.}, subject = {Vulkanismus}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{VogelWeberFischeretal.2012, author = {Vogel, Andreas and Weber, Konradin and Fischer, Christian and Prata, A. J. and Durant, A. J.}, title = {Aircraft in situ and remote sensing measurements of emissions from Etna volcano, Sicily}, series = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2012}, booktitle = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2012}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Volcanoes emit particles (silicates and sulphate aerosol) and gases (e.g., water and sulphur dioxide) which influence the radiative balance of the atmosphere. The rate at which sulphur dioxide oxidises to sulphate aerosol is poorly constrained and measurements of downwind abundance are required to quantify the rate at which this process occurs. During July and November 2011, a series of measurements were performed in emissions from Etna Volcano, Sicily, using the University of Applied Sciences (Dusseldorf) research aircraft. Both in situ and remote sensing instrumentation was simultaneously deployed to quantify the down-wind characteristics of gases and particles in the plume emitted by the volcano. In situ particle characteristics were measured using a Grimm 1.109 optical particle counter (microparticles 0.25-32 microns) and Grimm 1320 diffusion electrometer (nanoparticles 25-300 nanometers). Column abundance of sulphur dioxide was measured using a vertically-pointing differential optical absorption spectrometer (DOAS). These measurements were compared to horizontal pathlength-integrated measurements of sulphur dioxide from the Airborne Volcanic Imaging Object Detector (AVOID). Down-wind plume dispersion was discriminated through a series of aircraft transects below and through the volcanic plume. The emissions contained large amounts of nanoparticles relative to microparticles, which reflects gas-phase nucleation of sulphate aerosol. The AVOID system discriminated horizontal layering of volcanic aerosol at altitudes of up to 12,000 ft from a detection range of >50 km. Plume boundaries were discriminated using a combination of the in situ and DOAS measurements in order to compare to the pathlength-integrated measurements from AVOID.}, subject = {Forschungsflugzeug}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{WeberEliassonArnasonetal.2015, author = {Weber, Konradin and Eliasson, Jonas and Arnason, Gylfi and R{\"o}gnvaldsson, {\´O}lafur and Thorsteinsson, Throstur and Palsson, Thorgeir and B{\"o}hlke, Christoph and Fischer, Christian and Smith, Paul and Jones, Roderic L. and Tirpitz, Lukas and Platt, Ulrich}, title = {Airborne Investigations and WRF - Model Calculations of the Bardarbunga-Holuhraun Eruption Plume}, series = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2015}, volume = {17}, booktitle = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2015}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, year = {2015}, abstract = {The eruption in Holuhraun is the largest producer of lava and gas in Iceland since 1783. The Volcanic Ash Research (VAR) group organized an airborne measurement campaign including 10 flights, where emissions of SO2 and ash concentrations were measured at the source and at the far plume. The highest SO2 concentration at the source was nearly up to 100 mg/m3. This is an extremely high value, compared to other airborne campaigns and a contamination considered to cause serious illness by the Icelandic Directorate of Health. Volcanic ash consisted of very fine particles, but the concentration was low when compared to other recent eruptions. Measurements of the far plume showed that scavenging is very active. The dispersion was successfully modeled with the Weather Research and Foreast (WRF-chem) model and analysis using the model showed that a large amount of the sulphur was precipitated in the Icelandic highlands.}, subject = {Vulkanismus}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{GalleArellanoCondeetal.2015, author = {Galle, Bo and Arellano, Santiago and Conde, Vladimir and Pfeffer, Melissa and Barsotti, Sara and Stefansdottir, Gerður and Bergsson, Baldur and Bergsson, Bergur and Ingvarsson, Thorgils and Weber, Konradin}, title = {Ground based measurements of the gas emission from the Holuhraun volcanic fissure eruption on Iceland 2014/2015}, series = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2015}, volume = {17}, booktitle = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2015}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, year = {2015}, abstract = {The since 31 August 2014 ongoing volcanic eruption at Holuhraun on Iceland is by far the strongest source of sulfur dioxide in Europe over the last 230 years with sustained emission rates exceeding 100 000 ton/day. This gas emission severely affects local population and has become a concern also for air traffic. The eruption has in December continued at constant pace for 3.5 months. Three scenarios are envisaged for the future; (1) the eruption stops, (2) the fissure extends under the Vattnaj{\"o}kul glacier and (3) Bardarbunga volcano erupts. The two later scenarios will cause increased gas emission, severe ash emissions and extended flooding. Under the scope of the EU-project FUTUREVOLC, a project with 3.5 years duration, aiming at making Iceland a supersite for volcanological research as a European contribution to GEO, we are developing a version of the Scanning DOAS instrument that is adapted to high latitudes with low UV radiation and severe meteorological conditions. Since the first day of the eruption several of these novel instruments has been monitoring the SO2 emission from the eruption. Data from our instruments are still after 3.5 months the only sustained ground-based monitoring of this gas emission. A lot of work is however needed to sustain this operation at a very remote site and under severe field conditions. At the same time the very high concentrations in the gas plume, in combination with bad meteorological conditions require the development of novel methods to derive reliable flux estimates. In this presentation we will discuss the instrumental issues and present the latest version of the emission estimates made from our measurements.}, subject = {Vulkanismus}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{RoegnvaldssonArnasonPalssonetal.2015, author = {R{\"o}gnvaldsson, {\´O}lafur and Arnason, Gylfi and Palsson, Thorgeir and Eliasson, Jonas and Weber, Konradin and B{\"o}hlke, Christoph and Thorsteinsson, Throstur and Tirpitz, Lukas and Platt, Ulrich and Smith, Paul D. and Jones, Roderic L.}, title = {Modeling of SO2 dispersion from the 2014 Holuhraun eruption in Iceland using WRF-Chem}, series = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2015}, volume = {17}, booktitle = {Geophysical Research Abstracts: EGU General Assembly 2015}, publisher = {Copernicus}, address = {G{\"o}ttingen}, year = {2015}, abstract = {The fissure eruption in Holuhraun in central Iceland is the country's largest lava and gas eruption since 1783 but has produced very little volcanic ash. The eruption started in late August 2014 and is still ongoing as of January 2015. The main threat from this event has been atmospheric pollution of SO2 that is carried by wind to all parts of the country and produces elevated concentrations of SO2 that have frequently violated National Air Quality Standards (NAQS) in many population centers. The Volcanic Ash Research (VAR) group in Iceland is focused on airborne measurement of ash contamination to support safe air travel, as well as various gas concentrations. In relation to the Holuhraun eruption the VAR group has organized an investigation campaign including 10 measurement flights and performed measurements of both the source emissions and the plume distribution. SO2 concentrations measured at the source showed clear potential for creating pollution events in the toxic range and contamination of surface waters. The data obtained in the measurement campaign was used for calibration of the WRF-chem model of the dispersion of SO2 and volcanic ash concentration. The model has both been run in operational forecast mode (since mid October) as well as in a dynamical downscaling mode, to estimate the dispersion and fallout of SO2 from the plume. The model results indicate that a large part of the sulphur was precipitated in the Icelandic highlands. The first melt waters during the spring thaw are likely to contain acid sulphur compounds that can be harmful for vegetation, with the highland vegetation being the most vulnerable. These results will be helpful to estimate the pollution load on farmlands and pastures of farmers.}, subject = {Vulkanismus}, language = {en} }