Caldera Volcanism

This volume aims at providing answers to some puzzling questions concerning the formation and the behavior of collapse calderas by exploring our current understanding of these complex geological processes. Addressed are problems such as: - How do collapse calderas form? - What are the conditions to create fractures and slip along them to initiate caldera collapse and when are these conditions fulfilled? - How do these conditions relate to explosive volcanism? - Most products of large caldera-forming eruptions show evidence for pre-eruptive reheating. Is this a pre-requisite to produce large volume eruptions and large calderas? - What are the time-scales behind caldera processes? - How long does it take magma to reach conditions ripe enough to generate a caldera-forming eruption? - What is the mechanical behavior of magma chamber walls during caldera collapse? Elastic, viscoelastic, or rigid? - Do calderas form by underpressure following a certain level of magma withdrawal from a reservoir, or by magma chamber loading due to deep doming (underplating), or both? - How to interpret unrest signals in active caldera systems? - How can we use information from caldera monitoring to forecast volcanic phenomena? In the form of 14 contributions from various disciplines this book samples the state-of-the-art of caldera studies and identifies still unresolved key issues that need dedicated cross-boundary and multidisciplinary efforts in the years to come. * International contributions from leading experts * Updates and informs on all the latest developments * Highlights hot topic areas and identifies and analyzes unresolved key issues