Abstract

Abstract: Volcanic eruptions can have a dramatic impact upon humans, from the brutally direct through to the insidious role of gas and ash on the global scale. Characteristic pre-eruptive behaviour has now been established for a handful of frequently active volcanoes. The most damaging eruptions are, however, infrequent, which presents challenges for understanding monitoring data from very large volcanic systems. How should we interpret, for example, deep earthquake swarms, ground deformation and gas emanations around huge subglacial volcanoes in Iceland? These volcanoes that have the potential to cause significant disruption and death in the UK. I will describe how exciting advances in Earth Sciences have allowed us to use crystals in volcanic rocks as chronometers of pre-eruptive processes. We can study ancient and damaging eruptions and resolve the likely magma storage depth, pre-eruptive gas release and timescales of magma transport to within days, or, in some cases, hours. These findings can help to guide future volcano monitoring activities and transform our ability to coexist with volcanoes.