Date of Award
1-1-2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.S. in Engineering Science
First Advisor
Ronald C. Counts
Second Advisor
Brian F. Platt
Third Advisor
Robert M. Holt
School
University of Mississippi
Relational Format
dissertation/thesis
Abstract
Presented here is the culmination of research spurred by a month-long field expedition to the windward side of the Big Island of Hawai’i during July and August 2023. During this expedition, two ground-penetrating radar units, a Mala GX 160 MHz antenna and a Crossover 1760 dual frequency antenna, were used to survey the basaltic, volcanic landscapes of Mauna Loa and Kīlauea. Post-eruptive digital elevation models of the Ahu’ailā’au (2018 Lower Puna) Eruption and Quantum Geographic Information Systems were used in tandem with GPR Insights software to provide a thorough picture of the surface and subsurface lava flows from Ahu’ailā’au. Using a contemporary understanding of dynamical theoretical physics certain flow features within lava flows reveal themselves as not just the product of topographical or geographical controls but as inherent features of the physical and chemical nature of lava. Using hydraulic theory, emplacement times are calculated based on Froude assumption. Results from the radar units are incorporated into certain theoretical models to demonstrate that lava tube placement within lava flows is not the product of chance but that they form at locations of interference and turbidity. This evidence suggests that lava flows that come from rifts and vents on Hawai’i can be modeled as non-autonomous, damped and driven flows. They exhibit a breakdown in linear superposition, exponential sensitivity, sudden discontinuous changes, stability and instability, self-similarity, phase-locking, and emergent order arising from local interactions: in other words, chaotic determinism. This suggests that lava flows could be plotted and mapped in state and phase spaces, potentially improving geohazard warnings.
Recommended Citation
Conner, Brody K., "Applying Dynamics and Geophysical Methods to Hawaiian Volcanic Terrains and Lava Flows" (2024). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3007.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/3007
