The seafloor record of explosive submarine volcanic eruptions

The seafloor record of explosive submarine volcanic eruptions | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article The seafloor record of explosive submarine volcanic eruptions Jacob Nash, Isobel Yeo, Michael Clare, James Hunt, Andrew Cundy, and 10 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6630366/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Underwater density currents triggered by marine volcanic eruptions threaten island communities and infrastructure, while their deposits provide potential archives of past major eruptions. Despite their significance, a scarcity of real-time observations and sampling of resultant deposits limits our understanding of the behaviour of such currents and the extent to which they vary in relation to triggering mechanism(s). Based on data acquired following the cataclysmic 2022 eruption of Hunga Volcano, we show that syn-eruptive vertical delivery of pyroclastic material into the ocean via low-column collapses and fountaining triggered the multidirectional dispersal of highly-concentrated underwater density currents. Rapid supply of huge volumes (<6.5 km3 18 ) of dense pyroclastic material onto the steep flanks over minutes-to-hours generated currents capable of maintaining high density and velocity 10s to 100s of kilometres from the volcano. This behaviour contrasts with density currents triggered by volcanic flank collapses and the ocean-entry of terrestrial pyroclastic density currents. We outline diagnostic criteria to identify and differentiate deposits of such underwater currents from other processes - enabling better reconstruction of the records of volcanic activity in marine sediments and enhancing hazard assessments in many submerged volcanic settings worldwide. Earth and environmental sciences/Natural hazards Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Volcanology Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Sedimentology Earth and environmental sciences/Solid Earth sciences/Geochemistry Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SupplementaryMaterialFinal.pdf Supplementary Material, Discussion, Figures, and tables COMPONENTRY.xlsx Dataset 1 EPMA.xlsx Dataset 2 GRAINSIZE.xlsx Dataset 3 XRF.xlsx Dataset 4 Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6630366","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":465928755,"identity":"515c1471-bb4e-4da4-83b8-04c06263d28f","order_by":0,"name":"Jacob 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