Continuous, Direct Gas-Geochemical Monitoring in Hydrothermal Vents: Installation and Long-Term Operation on Nisyros Island (Greece)

In this paper the installation and long-term operation of a system for continuous monitoring of fumarolic gases is described. Several physicochemical and gas-geochemical parameters such as the concentration of CO₂, H₂S and CO in the fumarolic emissions, as well as the temperatures of the hydrothermal steam and soil in close vicinity of the fumarole and steam pressure are measured in short-time intervals (typically 15 seconds). Data are logged on-site and in parallel transferred to a remote station by digital telemetry. Specially developed software enables the real-time observation of the local conditions in the crater and full bidirectional control of the monitoring system. Fluctuations in the monitored parameters are also reported. From the data presented it can be concluded that environmental conditions (direction and strength of wind, precipitation) will interact with some of the parameters monitored. These influences can only be revealed by continuously operated monitoring systems.