Volcanic eruption: Scientists perform volcanic scenarios to develop response plan
November 7, 2023 - Dani Rae Wascher
What would happen if a volcano were to erupt tomorrow in New Mexico? How prepared as we as a society for an event like this to occur? When volcanic unrest occurs, both academic and government agencies need to have advanced fundamental understanding of the volcanic system with coordination before, during and after the event. This necessity has prompted the development of a response plan.
This is where the Community Network for Volcanic Eruption Response (CONVERSE) created scenario exercises centered around a hypothetical volcanic crisis in Arizona’s San Francisco Volcanic Field (SFVF) in the United States. The paper, “Lessons learned from the 2022 CONVERSE Monogenetic Volcanism Response Scenario Exercise'' was recently published in Volcanica journal. The University of New Mexico’s Yolanda C. Lin, lead author, and Tobias Fischer, co-author, helped to publish this research.
This project supported building connections amongst volcano scientists, both within academia and with governmental patterns such as the United States Geological Survey (USGS). These studies are critical for effective scientific response in case of an actual event of volcanic unrest. The effectiveness and impacts of these scenario exercises have not been well-studied. The exercise operated virtually from February 4 to March 4, 2022. The San Francisco Volcanic Field (in Arizona) was chosen in part because it offered a “different” type of response, as a field rather than a classic “cone” shape, and because it covers a variety of controlling bodies (US Gov, tribal lands, private entities, etc).
“This research contributes to understanding how these types of scenario exercises develop a shared culture and sense of community within current and future volcano scientists,” stated Yolanda C. Lin, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies.
That community Lin spoke of expanded quite literally due to the use of online platforms to execute scenario exercises, which can be more inclusive (since no travel is required, and funding is limited), and can operate over a longer period of time since no actual field work is being conducted.
Read more in the UNM Newsroom
