Modelling remote interaction between Mauna Loa and Kilauea volcanoes though elastic stress-transfer

Various studies pointed out at a correlation between the activity of Mauna Loa and Kilauea volcanoes in Hawaii. This relationship between the two volcanoes was, for instance, explained by a crustal-level interaction of pulses of magma that cause pressure variations in shallow magma system. Other authors explain the interaction by pore pressure diffusion in a thin accumulation layer of asthenosphere. The stress transfer was mentioned by various authors to explain the dynamics of intrusions along rift zones and the interaction between earthquakes and eruptions at Mauna Loa and Kilauea. The application of Independent Component Analysis to an ENVISAT satellite SBAS DInSAR dataset, spanning the interval 2003-2011, revealed the existence of a marked anticorrelation pattern between the two volcanoes. A similar pattern has been evidenced by GPS data analysis in the interval 2008-2011. Our results showed an anticorrelated behaviour between sources located at shallows depth beneath Mauna Loa and Kilauea. Furthermore, they revealed another independent source of ground deformation affecting Kilauea alone but located at greater depth. The aim of this work is to explain the mechanism that allows this crustal-level relationship between both volcanoes. Because of the shallow depth of the inferred sources, we exclude a direct interconnection between their magmatic systems. This is also supported by petrologic data showing clearly the existence of separated reservoirs. We postulate instead, stress-transfer as the most plausible mechanism to explain this interaction. The inflation of Mauna Loa creates a stress field which makes the magma ascent into the shallower reservoir of Kilauea less likely. The same mechanisms could act in an opposite scenery. We performed a forward inverse modelling of the interaction of Mauna Loa and Kilauea to constrain source geometries and dynamics. In particular, we tested the effect of different geometries of the respective magmatic systems under the effect of an external stress field. The modelling of the interaction of Mauna Loa and Kilauea through stress-transfer revealed to be a useful to better understanding the dynamics of both volcanoes. Furthermore, these results are relevant in aiding the interpretation of the geophysical signals recorded by the monitoring networks of the two volcanoes.