Taupōinflate: illustrating detection limits of magmatic inflation below Lake Taupō

Abstract

ABSTRACT Lake Taupō (Taupō-nui-a-Tia) infills the composite caldera above an active rhyolitic magmatic system in the central Taupō Volcanic Zone (TVZ). Ground deformation is a key unrest indicator at Taupō volcano. We present a spreadsheet tool, TaupōInflate, to calculate and plot ground deformation from magmatic inflation at depth beneath Taupō caldera. Examples show detection limits for inflating magma bodies and their ascent through the crust beneath Lake Taupō. Source locations where it is challenging to detect even substantial volumes of inflating magma bodies are as large as 20 km3, with volume changes up to 0.01 km3, owing to the restricted station placement around the lake, although a dike propagating from shallow crustal depths towards the surface is likely to be detectable. For a magma overpressure of 10 MPa, the sizes of detectable inflating bodies at depths of 5–8 km using the present monitoring system are larger than the volumes of many past eruptions, illustrating the importance of future improvements to the geodetic network. We discuss the potential for future equipment installation, including lakebed instrumentation that would require approval of local iwi Ngāti Tūwharetoa through the Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board who oversee the health and wellbeing of Lake Taupō.