Colin Wilson

Abstract:

Abstract We investigate the conditions that will promote explosive volcanic activity on Venus. Conduit processes were simulated using a steady-state, isothermal, homogeneous flow model in tandem with a degassing model. The response of exit pressure, exit velocity, and degree of volatile exsolution was explored over a range of volatile concentrations (H2O and CO2), magma temperatures, vent altitudes, and conduit geometries relevant to the Venusian environment. We find that the addition of CO2 to an H2O-driven eruption increases the final pressure, velocity, and volume fraction gas. Increasing vent elevation leads to a greater degree of magma fragmentation, due to the decrease in the final pressure at the vent, resulting in a greater likelihood of explosive activity. Increasing the magmatic temperature generates higher final pressures, greater velocities, and lower final volume fraction gas values with a correspondingly lower chance of explosive volcanism. Cross-sectionally smaller, and/or deeper, conduits were more conducive to explosive activity. Model runs show that for an explosive eruption to occur at Scathach Fluctus, at Venus' mean planetary radius (MPR), 4.5% H2O or 3% H2O with 3% CO2 (from a 25 m radius conduit) would be required to initiate fragmentation; at Ma'at Mons (~9 km above MPR) only ~2% H2O is required. A buoyant plume model was used to investigate plume behaviour. It was found that it was not possible to achieve a buoyant column from a 25 m radius conduit at Scathach Fluctus, but a buoyant column reaching up to ~20 km above the vent could be generated at Ma'at Mons with an H2O concentration of 4.7% (at 1300 K) or a mixed volatile concentration of 3% H2O with 3% CO2 (at 1200 K). We also estimate the flux of volcanic gases to the lower atmosphere of Venus, should explosive volcanism occur. Model results suggest explosive activity at Scathach Fluctus would result in an H2O flux of ~10⁷ kg s^-1. Were Scathach Fluctus emplaced in a single event, our model suggests that it may have been emplaced in a period of ~15 days, supplying 1-2×10⁴ Mt H2O to the atmosphere locally. An eruption of this scale might increase local atmospheric H2O abundance by several ppm over an area large enough to be detectable by near-infrared nightside sounding using the 1.18 μm spectral window such as that carried out by the Venus Express/VIRTIS spectrometer. Further interrogation of the VIRTIS dataset is recommended to search for ongoing volcanism on Venus.

Abstract:

Abstract One of the difficulties in modeling Venus' nightside atmospheric windows is the need to apply CO2 continuum opacity due to collision-induced CO2 bands and/or extreme far wings of strong allowed CO2 bands. Characterizing the CO2 continuum absorption at near-IR wavelengths as well as searching for a possible vertical gradient of minor species near the surface require observations over different surface elevations. The largest change in altitude occurs during a passage above Maxwell Montes at high northern latitudes. In 2011, 2012 and 2013 the SPICAV instrument aboard the Venus Express satellite performed three sets of observations over Maxwell Montes with variation of surface altitude from -2 to 9 km in the 1.10, 1.18 and 1.28-μm windows. The retrieved CO2 continuum absorption for the 1.10- and 1.18-μm windows varies from 0.29 to 0.66×10^-9 cm^-1 amagat^-2 and from 0.30 to 0.78×10^-9 cm^-1 amagat^-2, respectively, depending on the assumed input parameters. The retrieval is sensitive to possible variations of the surface emissivity. Our values fall between the results of Bézard et al., (2009, 2011) based on VIRTIS-M observations and laboratory measurements by Snels et al. (2014). We can also conclude that the continuum absorption at 1.28 μm can be constrained below 2.0×10^-9 cm^-1 amagat^-2. Based on the 1.18 μm window the constant H2O mixing ratio varying from 25.7^+1.4-1.2 ppm to 29.4^+1.6-1.4 ppm has been retrieved assuming the surface emissivity of 0.95 and 0.6, respectively. No firm conclusion from SPICAV data about the vertical gradient of water vapor content at 10-20 km altitude could be drawn because of low signal-to-noise ratio and uncertainties in the surface emissivity.