The role of substrate hydrogeology and surface hydrology in the construction of phreatomagmatic volcanoes on an active monogenetic field (Auckland, New Zealand) : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Earth Science at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
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Date
2015
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Massey University
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Abstract
Phreatomagmatic activity is pervasive in the Auckland Volcanic Field (AVF) with more than two thirds of
the erupted volcanoes showing this type of activity at different degrees, dominantly at the onset of their
eruptive histories. In general, the volcanoes built in the northern AVF rest on Late Miocene Waitemata
Group rocks (turbiditic siltstone and sandstone succession), whereas in the southern AVF the Waitemata
rocks are overlain by tens of metres of Plio-Pleistocene, water-saturated sediments (Tauranga Group and
Kaawa Formation). Identifying the control exerted by the type of substrate in the eruption dynamics of the
phreatomagmatic phases of three volcanoes in the AVF is the objective of this study. The stratigraphic,
sedimentary, and pyroclast characteristics of the phreatomagmatic sequences of Maungataketake,
Motukorea, and North Head volcanoes, together with supplementary information on the geology and
hydrogeology of the area, were investigated to solve the problem. Three phreatomagmatic eruptive
scenarios were outlined. Scenario 1 (Maungataketake eruption) and Scenario 2 (Motukorea eruption)
depict the formation of maar-diatreme volcanoes in the southern and northern AVF, respectively. The
dominant presence of lithics from the upper part of the substrate in their tephra rings suggests the
construction of their tephra rings from shallow-seated explosions. Due to the water-saturated sediments
filling the diatreme in Scenario 1, the eruption appears to have remained relatively wet throughout.
Conversely, the drier Waitemata rocks involved in Scenario 2 promoted a progressive drying of the
eruption. Scenario 3 (North Head eruption) represents a Surtseyan eruption scenario in which the rising
magma erupted to the shallow sea floor (a few metres-water depth), promoting rapid chilling and explosive
fragmentation. This study shows that the characterization of lithics within the tephra ring and the
geological and hydrogeological information provide valuable clues to envisage the degree of influence of
the substrate in the phreatomagmatic eruption dynamics. Other studies in the AVF appear to confirm this
view. It is proposed that any future phreatomagmatic eruption in the AVF will be strongly influenced by the
substrate hydrogeology and geology, as well as the surface hydrological conditions.
Description
Material removed for copyright reasons (appendices B, D and E):
Agustín-Flores, J., Németh K., Cronin, S., Lindsay, J., Kereszturi,
G., Brand, B., & Smith, I.E.M. (2014). Phreatomagmatic eruptions through unconsolidated
coastal plain sequences, Maungataketake, Auckland Volcanic Field (New Zealand). Journalof Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 180, 203-224. doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2014.02.021
Agustín-Flores, J., Németh, K., Cronin, S., Lindsay, J., & Kereszturi,
G. (2015). Shallow-seated explosions in the construction of the Motukorea tuff ring
(Auckland, New Zealand): Evidence from lithic and sedimentary characteristics. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 304, 272-286. doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2015.09.013
Agustín-Flores, J., Németh, K., Cronin, S., Lindsay, J., & Kereszturi,
G., 2015. Construction of the North Head (Maungauika) tuff cone: a product of Surtseyan volcanism, rare in the Auckland Volcanic Field, New Zealand. Bulletin of Volcanology, 77, 11. doi:10.1007/s00445-014-0892-9
Keywords
Hydrogeology, Hydrology, Volcanism, Volcanology, Auckland, New Zealand