Inflating volcanoes and the worlds' largest magma body: Studies of magmatism in the Bolivian Andes

The Andes are the textbook example of a mountain range built by subduction zone magmatism. However, many details of magma generation and evolution are not understood. In this talk I will introduce two University of Alberta field projects that are studying magmatism in the Andes and investigating the possibility that we are seeing signs of an approaching large eruption. The PLUTONS project is investigating two volcanoes in the Central Andes that show surface uplift over areas 50-100 km across at a rate 1 cm per year. Combined geophysical and geological data are being used to locate the magma chambers and determine the uplift history. These volcanoes overlie the world’s largest magma body and we are investigating the hypothesis that another super-volcano eruption is possible. A second project is beginning at Laguna del Maule in the Southern Andes in Chile where a magma body at 5 km depth is causing uplift at an unprecedented rate of 30 cm per year. As well as presenting the most recent results from these projects, I will also show photos from our recent Andean fieldwork in Bolivia and Chile.