This grant supports upgrade of a continuous-GPS (CGPS) network on Sierra Negra volcano in the Galapagos. The original network was funded through previous NSF/EAR support. The upgrade will include acquisition and field deployment of four new dual frequency GPS receivers and radio modems. The upgrade will completely replace remaining single frequency receivers in the Sierra Negra network with dual frequency receivers with greatly enhanced on board memory. The upgraded CGPS network will allow for continued observations of one of the most active basaltic volcanoes in the world. The dynamics of this volcanic system allows for an extraordinary opportunity to learn more about the interplay between magma intrusion and surface deformation. All of the GPS data collected by the Sierra Negra network will continue to be freely accessible through the UNAVCO data system in near real time.
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The primary research activities from this award were two trips to Sierra Negra volcano on the Galapagos island of Isabela to successfully upgrade the existing continuous-GPS (CGPS) network. The network was originally installed in 2002, but old and obsolete instrumentation needed replacing which was leading to repeated data loss. We replaced the GPS receivers, antennas, radios and batteries at the 10 CGPS stations to make the network more reliable and robust with now with multiple data backup capabilities. This will ensure that the network continues to operate at a high level for years to come. Data from the CGPS network is showing that volcanic inflation, which started immediately after its 2005 eruption, has continued at a decreasing rate until just recently when it started to deflate slightly. Such a pause in inflation occurred several years before the last eruption in 2005. The upgraded network will be able to continue to track the remarkable deformation occurring at Sierra Negra volcano to illuminate the relationships between inflation and faulting in the caldera to see if it is possible to forecast eruptions there based on the cyclic pattern of deformation. This is a long-term collaborative project with Dennis Geist (University of Idaho). We also coordinate our work with the Instituto Geofisico at the Escuela Politecnica Nacional in Quito, Ecuador along with the Charles Darwin Research Station and the Galapagos National Park.
