A roadmap for amphibious drilling at the Campi Flegrei caldera: insights from a MagellanPlus workshop

Abstract

Large calderas are among the Earth's major volcanic features. They are associated with large magma reservoirs and elevated geothermal gradients. Caldera-forming eruptions result from the withdrawal and collapse of the magma chambers and produce large-volume pyroclastic deposits and later-stage deformation related to post-caldera resurgence and volcanism. Unrest episodes are not always followed by an eruption; however, every eruption is preceded by unrest.

The Campi Flegrei caldera (CFc), located along the eastern Tyrrhenian coastline in southern Italy, is close to the densely populated area of Naples. It is one of the most dangerous volcanoes on Earth and represents a key example of an active, resurgent caldera. It has been traditionally interpreted as a nested caldera formed by collapses during the 100–200 km3 Campanian Ignimbrite (CI) eruption at ∼39 ka and the 40 km3 eruption of the Neapolitan Yellow Tuff (NYT) at ∼15 ka. Recent studies have suggested that the CI may instead have been fed by a fissure eruption from the Campanian Plain, north of Campi Flegrei.

A MagellanPlus workshop was held in Naples, Italy, on 25–28 February 2017 to explore the potential of the CFc as target for an amphibious drilling project within the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) and the International Continental Drilling Program (ICDP). It was agreed that Campi Flegrei is an ideal site to investigate the mechanisms of caldera formation and associated post-caldera dynamics and to analyze the still poorly understood interplay between hydrothermal and magmatic processes. A coordinated onshore–offshore drilling strategy has been developed to reconstruct the structure and evolution of Campi Flegrei and to investigate volcanic precursors by examining (a) the succession of volcanic and hydrothermal products and related processes, (b) the inner structure of the caldera resurgence, (c) the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the hydrothermal system and offshore sediments, and (d) the geological expression of the phreatic and hydromagmatic eruptions, hydrothermal degassing, sedimentary structures, and other records of these phenomena. The deployment of a multiparametric in situ monitoring system at depth will enable near-real-time tracking of changes in the magma reservoir and hydrothermal system.