Eruption Pattern and a Long-Term Magma Discharge Rate over the Past 100 Years at Kelud Volcano, Indonesia

Abstract

Kelud Volcano is among the most active volcanoes in Indonesia, with repeated explosive eruptions throughout its history. Here, we reconstructed the relationship between the repose period and the cumulative volume of erupted material over the past 100 years and estimated the long-term magma discharge rate and future eruptive potential and hazards. Tephra data and eruption sequences described in historical documents were used to estimate the volume and mass discharge rate. The volumes of the 1901, 1919, 1951, 1966, 1990, and 2014 eruptions were estimated as 51–296 × 10⁶ m³. The mass discharge rates were estimated to be on the order of 10⁷ kg/s for the 1919, 1951, and 2014 eruptions and the order of 10⁶ kg/s for the 1966 and 1990 eruptions. Based on a linear relationship between the repose period and cumulative erupted mass, the long-term mass discharge rate was estimated as ∼ 1.5 × 10¹⁰ kg/year, explaining the features of the larger eruptions (1919, 1951, and 2014) but not those of the smaller eruptions (1966 and 1990). This estimate is relatively high compared to other typical basaltic-andesitic subduction-zone volcanoes. This result provides important insights into the evolution of magmatic systems and prediction of future eruptions at Kelud Volcano.