Dynamic coupling of volcanic CO2 flow and wind at the Horseshoe Lake tree kill, Mammoth Mountain, California

We investigate spatio-temporal relationships between soil CO2 flux (FCO2), meteorological variables, and topography over a ten-day period (09/12/2006 to 09/21/2006) at the Horseshoe Lake tree kill, Mammoth Mountain, CA. Total CO2 discharge varied from 16 to 52 t d-1, suggesting a decline in CO2 emissions over decadal timescales. We observed systematic changes in FCO2 in space and time in association with a weather front with relatively high wind speeds from the west and low atmospheric pressures. The largest FCO2 changes were observed in relatively high elevation areas. The variations in FCO2 may be due to dynamic coupling of wind-driven airflow through the subsurface and flow of source CO2 at depth. Our results highlight the influence of weather fronts on volcanic gas flow in the near-surface environment and how this influence can vary spatially within a study area.

[1]  Kenneth A. McGee,et al.  Annual cycle of magmatic CO2 in a tree-kill soil at Mammoth Mountain, California: Implications for soil acidification , 1998 .

[2]  C. Cardellini,et al.  Comparative soil CO2 flux measurements and geostatistical estimation methods on Masaya volcano, Nicaragua , 2004 .

[3]  Joel Massmann,et al.  Effects of atmospheric pressures on gas transport in the vadose zone , 1992 .

[4]  P. Hernández,et al.  Diffuse emission of carbon dioxide from Cerro Negro Volcano, Nicaragua, Central America , 2001 .

[5]  R. Nilson,et al.  Atmospheric pumping: A mechanism causing vertical transport of contaminated gases through fractured permeable media , 1991 .

[6]  W. Evans,et al.  High CO2 emissions through porous media: transport mechanisms and implications for flux measurement and fractionation , 2001 .

[7]  William C. Evans,et al.  Carbon dioxide and helium emissions from a reservoir of magmatic gas beneath Mammoth Mountain, California , 1998 .

[8]  J. Lewicki,et al.  Self‐potential, soil CO2 flux, and temperature on Masaya volcano, Nicaragua , 2003 .

[9]  F. Goff,et al.  Elevated carbon dioxide flux at the Dixie Valley geothermal field, Nevada; relations between surface phenomena and the geothermal reservoir , 2001 .

[10]  Kenneth A. McGee,et al.  Three-year decline of magmatic CO2 emissions from soils of a Mammoth Mountain Tree Kill: Horseshoe Lake, CA, 1995–1997 , 1998 .

[11]  C. Cardellini,et al.  Application of stochastic simulation to CO2 flux from soil: Mapping and quantification of gas release , 2003 .

[12]  G. Rowe,et al.  Volatile emissions from the crater and flank of Oldoinyo Lengai volcano, Tanzania , 1996 .

[13]  D. Hill.  Earthquakes and Carbon Dioxide Beneath Mammoth Mountain, California , 1996 .

[14]  S. Gurrieri,et al.  Soil CO2 degassing along tectonic structures of Mount Etna (Sicily): the Pernicana fault , 1997 .

[15]  Luigi Marini,et al.  Soil CO2 flux measurements in volcanic and geothermal areas , 1998 .

[16]  D. Hill,et al.  Magmatic unrest beneath Mammoth Mountain, California , 2005 .

[17]  T. Gerlach,et al.  Geochemical evidence for a magmatic CO2 degassing event at Mammoth Mountain, California, September–December 1997 , 2000 .

[18]  C. Farrar,et al.  Magmatic Carbon Dioxide Emissions at Mammoth Mountain, California , 1999 .

[19]  Susan L. Brantley,et al.  CO2 emissions related to the Yellowstone volcanic system: 2. Statistical sampling, total degassing, and transport mechanisms , 2000 .

[20]  M. L. Sorey,et al.  Dynamics of carbon dioxide emission at Mammoth Mountain , 2001 .

[21]  W. C. Evans,et al.  Forest-killing diffuse CO2 emission at Mammoth Mountain as a sign of magmatic unrest , 1995, Nature.

[22]  Clayton V. Deutsch,et al.  GSLIB: Geostatistical Software Library and User's Guide , 1993 .

[23]  T. Gerlach,et al.  Soil efflux and total emission rates of magmatic CO2 at the Horseshoe Lake tree kill, Mammoth Mountain, California, 1995–1999 , 2001 .