T32 Showcase of Undergraduate Research Posters by 2YC and 4YCU Geoscience Students (Posters)

Sunday, 4 November 2018
9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Halls J-K

SHAPE, SIZE, AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF TEPHRA PARTICLES FROM 2010 EYJAFJALLAJÖKULL AND 2014-15 BÁRDARBUNGA ERUPTION

Paper number: T32-19
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM

Authors

Abstract

The variations of shape, size, and chemical properties of volcanic tephra particles are important to study due to their hazard potential. Our project compares sizes, shapes and chemical composition of tephra particles from two different volcanic eruptions in Iceland; the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull that paralyzed air traffic in Europe due to the amount of tephra in the upper atmosphere, and the 2014/2015 Bardarbunga eruption which impacted air quality in Iceland by large emissions of sulfur dioxide. Tephra samples from the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption were collected at five different locations around the Solheimajökull glacier in South Iceland. Tephra samples from the 2014/2015 Bardarbunga eruption were collected from the northeast side of the Vatnajökull Mountains. We used a Leica DMS 300 optical microscope to visually characterize and identify particles to the best extent possible. We analyzed tephra particle sizes using ImageJ Fiji software on high resolution images captured using the optical microscope. We analyzed representative tephra particles from both eruptions using a TM3000 tabletop Scanning Electron Microscope with X-Ray Spectroscopy capabilities owned by Oakton Community College, IL. Preliminary results show that tephra samples from both eruptions mostly contain volcanic glass and rock fragments with predominantly mafic compositions. Small crystals of calcium-rich plagioclase feldspar were also observed. Tephra samples from Bardarbunga show an average size of 13 microns-while samples from Eyjafjallajökull eruptions ranged from 4 to 13 microns. In this presentation we describe our results and discuss the possible impacts of tephra on the surrounding regions.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 50, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2018AM-321127

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