Hail formation triggers rapid ash aggregation in volcanic plumes
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Abstract
During explosive eruptions, airborne particles collide and stick together, accelerating the fallout of volcanic ash and climate-forcing aerosols. This aggregation process remains a major source of uncertainty both in ash dispersal forecasting and interpretation of eruptions from the geological record. Here we illuminate the mechanisms and timescales of particle aggregation from a well-characterized ‘wet’ eruption. The 2009 eruption of Redoubt Volcano in Alaska incorporated water from the surface (in this case, a glacier), which is a common occurrence during explosive volcanism worldwide. Observations from C-band weather radar, fall deposits, and numerical modeling demonstrate that volcanic hail formed rapidly in the eruption plume, leading to mixed-phase aggregation of ~95% of the fine ash and stripping much of the cloud out of the atmosphere within 30 minutes. Based on these findings, we propose a mechanism of hail-like aggregation that contributes to the anomalously rapid fallout of fine ash and the occurrence of concentrically-layered aggregates in volcanic deposits.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Hail formation triggers rapid ash aggregation in volcanic plumes |
| Series title | Nature Communications |
| DOI | 10.1038/ncomms8860 |
| Volume | 6 |
| Year Published | 2015 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Nature Publishing Group |
| Contributing office(s) | Volcano Science Center |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
| Other Geospatial | Redoubt Volcano |
| Online Only (Y/N) | N |
| Additional Online Files (Y/N) | N |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |