Shanaka L de Silva | |
---|---|
Nationality | British/American |
Occupation(s) | Geologist, academic and author |
Academic background | |
Education | BSc (Hons)., Geology PhD., Earth Sciences |
Alma mater | University of Southampton Open University |
Academic work | |
Institutions | Oregon State University |
Shanaka L de Silva is a British-American geologist,academic and author. He is Sri Lankan by birth but grew up in England where he completed his education. He then moved to the US where he is a professor of geology and geophysics at Oregon State University. [1]
De Silva is most known for his research into how volcanoes develop and erupt and the risks that they pose,primarily focusing on the largest explosive volcanic eruptions on the planet. He has conducted research on volcanoes in many locations including South America,Indonesia,Japan,China/DPRK and Saudi Arabia. Among his authored works are his publications in academic journals,including the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research , Nature ,and Journal of Petrology [2] as well as books such as Volcanoes of the Central Andes. [3]
De Silva earned his BSc (Hons). in Geology from the University of Southampton in 1983. In 1987,he went on to receive a PhD in Earth Sciences from the Open University in the United Kingdom. [1]
De Silva began his academic career in 1987 as a visiting postdoctoral fellow at the Lunar and Planetary Institute,a position he held until 1990. From 1991 to 1995,he served as an assistant professor of geology at Indiana State University,before being promoted to associate professor of geology,a role he occupied from 1995 to 2000. In 2000,he was appointed professor of geology at the same institution,a position he held until 2001. Between 2001 and 2006,he undertook concurrent roles at the University of North Dakota,serving as a department head and professor in the Department of Space Studies. [1]
Between 2008 and 2013,de Silva held a fellowship at the NASA Experimental Program for Stimulating Competitive Research and the NASA Space Grant Program. Between 2015 and 2019,he was the vice president of the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior. Additionally,from 2014 to 2022,he was one of the Science Editors of the journal Geosphere,published by the Geological Society of America. Moreover,he is one of the science editors for GSA Books. [4]
In 2014,de Silva was invited to give expert testimony to the 113th Congress,Natural Resources Sub-Committee on "Volcano Hazards:Exploring the National Preparation and Response Strategy". [5] [6]
De Silva has contributed to various publications,including books,throughout his career. In 1991,he co-authored a catalog on Andean volcanoes,featuring detailed information,satellite images,figures,and descriptions of 44 major,potentially active volcanoes in the region. [3] He and his teams have worked on the Altiplano-Puna plateau in South America for almost three decades and,since 2015,on the Toba volcano in Sumatra,making contributions to the understanding of the largest and most explosive volcanoes on Earth—large calderas—and their relationship to granite batholiths. His work on hazardous volcanoes includes his team's various publications on the 1600 eruption of Volcán Huaynaputina and Misti Volcano in Peru,and the Changbaishan/Paektu volcano on the China/DPRK border. He has also published several works using Earth processes and products as analogues for other planets,most notably Mars. [7]
As part of his volcanism research,de Silva has studied the largest and most explosive volcanoes on Earth,large calderas or supervolcanoes. [8] His 1989 research discovered the Altiplano-Puna Volcanic Complex in the Andes,attributing its formation to large-scale crustal melting caused by crustal thickening and subduction-related magma heat,leading to significant silicic magmatism and extensive ignimbrite eruptions. [9] [10] His work establishes that the formation of complex calderas are the result of crustal processes driven by elevated mantle heat,leading to crustal softening,magma formation,and large-scale volcanic eruptions,thereby redefining such calderas as tectonomagmatic phenomena rather than purely volcanic events. [11] This theme of research has been applied to many other calderas,around the world,including Toba,Sumatra,to help understand their development,evolution and future hazards. [12] In 2007 he contributed to a review that integrated data from volcanic and plutonic rocks to understand them as part of a continuum,proposing that volcanic rocks represent erupted melt-rich regions from crystal-rich reservoirs that later solidify into plutons,ultimately aiming to better understand Earth's magmatic processes and crustal formation. [13]
In 2020,de Silva's team presented an analysis of the eruptive history of Changbaishan-Tianchi volcano,confirming three eruptions including the Generalized Millennium Eruption of 946 CE,while also providing new age estimates and insights into the nature of these eruptions. [14] Additionally,he is serving as the Principal Investigator of a project to establish the current state of the active Cerro Blanco caldera magmatic system in Argentina and its potential to erupt again. [15] He is also the Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI) of a project,aiming to advance techniques for dating explosive volcanic eruptions in the Asia-Pacific region within the last million years. [16]
A supervolcano is a volcano that has had an eruption with a volcanic explosivity index (VEI) of 8,the largest recorded value on the index. This means the volume of deposits for such an eruption is greater than 1,000 cubic kilometers.
Cerro Galán is a caldera in the Catamarca Province of Argentina. It is one of the largest exposed calderas in the world and forms part of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes,one of the three volcanic belts found in South America. One of several major caldera systems in the Central Volcanic Zone,the mountain is grouped into the Altiplano–Puna volcanic complex.
The Purico complex is a Pleistocene volcanic complex in Chile close to Bolivia,formed by an ignimbrite,several lava domes and stratovolcanoes and one maar. It is in the Chilean segment of the Central Volcanic Zone,one of the four volcanic belts which make up the Andean Volcanic Belt. The Central Volcanic Zone spans Peru,Bolivia,Chile and Argentina and includes 44 active volcanoes as well as the Altiplano–Puna volcanic complex,a system of large calderas and ignimbrites of which Purico is a member. Licancabur to the north,La Pacana southeast and Guayaques to the east are separate volcanic systems.
Cordón de Puntas Negras is a 500 km2 (193 sq mi) volcanic chain located east of the Salar de Atacama in Chile's Antofagasta Region.
Pastos Grandes Lake is a lake in the Pastos Grandes caldera in the PotosíDepartment,Bolivia. At an elevation of 4,430 metres (14,530 ft),its surface area is 120 square kilometres (46 sq mi).
La Pacana is a Miocene age caldera in northern Chile's Antofagasta Region. Part of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes,it is part of the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex,a major caldera and silicic ignimbrite volcanic field. This volcanic field is located in remote regions at the Zapaleri tripoint between Chile,Bolivia and Argentina.
Aguas Calientes is a major Miocene caldera in Salta Province,Argentina. It is in the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes,a zone of volcanism covering southern Peru,Bolivia,northwest Argentina and northern Chile. This zone contains stratovolcanoes and calderas.
The Altiplano–Puna volcanic complex,also known as APVC,is a complex of volcanic systems in the Puna of the Andes. It is located in the Altiplano area,a highland bounded by the Bolivian Cordillera Real in the east and by the main chain of the Andes,the Western Cordillera,in the west. It results from the subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath the South American Plate. Melts caused by subduction have generated the volcanoes of the Andean Volcanic Belt including the APVC. The volcanic province is located between 21°S–24°S latitude. The APVC spans the countries of Argentina,Bolivia and Chile.
Cerro Guacha is a Miocene caldera in southwestern Bolivia's Sur Lípez Province. Part of the volcanic system of the Andes,it is considered to be part of the Central Volcanic Zone (CVZ),one of the three volcanic arcs of the Andes,and its associated Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex (APVC). A number of volcanic calderas occur within the latter.
Cerro Chascon-Runtu Jarita is a complex of lava domes located inside,but probably unrelated to,the Pastos Grandes caldera. It is part of the more recent phase of activity of the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex.
Kari-Kari is a Miocene caldera in the Potosi department,Bolivia. It is part of the El Fraile ignimbrite field of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes. Volcanic activity in the Central Volcanic Zone has generated 44 volcanic centres with postglacial activity and a number of calderas,including the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex.
Luingo is a caldera in the Andes of Argentina. It is located southeast of the Galan caldera. The caldera is not recognizable from satellite images and is associated with the Pucarilla-Cerro Tipillas volcanic complex.
Negra Muerta is a caldera in Argentina. It is part of the volcanic centres of the Andean Volcanic Belt,which has formed a number of calderas in large ignimbrite producing eruptions. These calderas include Aguas Calientes,Cerro Panizos,Galan,Negra Muerta and La Pacana. Some of these volcanic centres appear to be associated with large fault zones that cross the Puna.
Pairique volcanic complex is a volcanic complex in the Jujuy Province,Argentina.
Pastos Grandes is the name of a caldera and its crater lake in Bolivia. The caldera is part of the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex,a large ignimbrite province that is part of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes. Pastos Grandes has erupted a number of ignimbrites through its history,some of which exceeded a volume of 1,000 cubic kilometres (240 cu mi). After the ignimbrite phase,the lava domes of the Cerro Chascon-Runtu Jarita complex were erupted close to the caldera and along faults.
Laguna Colorada is an ignimbrite shield of the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex at an altitude of 5,000 metres (16,000 ft) in the Potosi Department of Bolivia.
Vilama is a Miocene caldera in Bolivia and Argentina. Straddling the border between the two countries,it is part of the Central Volcanic Zone,one of the four volcanic belts in the Andes. Vilama is remote and forms part of the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex,a province of large calderas and associated ignimbrites that were active since about 8 million years ago,sometimes in the form of supervolcanoes.
Los Frailes is an ignimbrite plateau in Bolivia,between the city of Potosi and the Lake Poopo. It belongs to a group of ignimbrites that exist in the Central Andes and which includes the Altiplano–Puna volcanic complex. The plateau covers a surface of 7,500 square kilometres (2,900 sq mi)–8,500 square kilometres (3,300 sq mi) with about 2,000 cubic kilometres (480 cu mi) of ignimbrite.
Coranzulí is a Miocene caldera in northern Argentina's Jujuy Province. Part of the Argentine Andes' volcanic segment,it is considered a member of the Central Volcanic Zone (CVZ). At the heart of the CVZ lies the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex,a group of volcanoes of which Coranzulíis a part:the complex has produced large ignimbrite sheets with a combined volume approaching 15,000 cubic kilometres (3,600 cu mi).
Cerro Panizos is a late Miocene-age shield-shaped volcano spanning the Potosi Department of Bolivia and the Jujuy Province of Argentina. It features two calderas and a group of lava domes. It is part of the Altiplano-Puna volcanic complex (APVC),a group of calderas and associated ignimbrites that erupted during the past ten million years. Cerro Panizos is part of the Central Volcanic Zone (CVZ),a volcanic arc that extends from Peru to Chile which was formed mostly by subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath South America.