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Abstract
Calderas are important features in all volcanic environments and are commonly the sites of geothermal activity and
mineralisation. Yet, it is only in the last 25 years that a thorough three-dimensional study of calderas has been carried out,
utilising studies of eroded calderas, geophysical analysis of their structures and analogue modelling of caldera formation. As
more data has become available on calderas, their individuality has become apparent. A distinction between dcalderaT, dcaldera
complexT, dcauldronT, and dring structureT is necessary, and new definitions are given in this paper. Descriptions of calderas,
based on dominant composition of eruptives (basaltic, peralkaline, andesiticdacitic, rhyolitic) can be used, and characteristics
of each broad group are given. Styles of eruption may be effusive or explosive, with the former dominant in basaltic calderas,
and the latter dominant in andesiticdacitic, rhyolitic and peralkaline calderas.
Four dend-memberT collapse styles occurplate or piston, piecemeal, trapdoor, and downsagbut many calderas have
multiple styles. Features of so-called dfunnelT and dchaoticT calderas proposed in the literature can be explained by other collapse
styles and the terms are considered unnecessary.
Ground deformation comprises subsidence or collapse (essential characteristics of a caldera) and uplifting/doming and
fracturing due to tumescence and/or resurgence (frequent, but not essential). Collapse may occur on pre-existing structures, such
as regional faults or on faults created during the caldera formation, and the shape of the collapse area will be influenced by
depth, size and shape of the magma chamber. The final morphology of a caldera will depend on how the caldera floor breaks up;
whether collapse takes place in one event or multiple events, whether vertical movement is spasmodic or continuous throughout
the eruptive sequence, and whether blocks subside uniformly or chaotically at one or more collapse centres.
A meaningful description of any caldera should therefore include; number of collapse events, presence or absence of
resurgence, caldera-floor coherency, caldera-floor collapse geometry, and dominant composition of eruptives.
D 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Caldera; Terminology; Structure; Tumescence/resurgence; Morphology
1. Introduction
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +64 3 364 2766; fax: +64 3 364
2769.
E-mail address: jim.cole@canterbury.ac.nz (J.W. Cole).
0012-8252/$ - see front matter D 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.earscirev.2004.06.004
2. Distribution of calderas
Calderas occur in all volcanic environments.
Basaltic calderas are characteristic of oceanic intraplate hot spot locations (e.g., Hawaii; Walker, 1988),
but also occur at some divergent plate boundaries in a
mid-ocean ridge situation (e.g., East Pacific Rise;
Fornari et al., 1984, and Iceland; Gudmundsson,
1995, although calderas in Iceland are commonly
associated with central volcanoes that include more
silicic volcanism). Andesiticdacitic calderas are
typically associated with convergent plate boundaries
where they occur on volcanoes in island arcs (e.g.,
Tofua, Tonga Islands; Baker et al., 1971) and
continental margin arcs (e.g., Crater Lake, Oregon;
Bacon, 1983). Peralkaline calderas are associated with
areas of high extension. They are common in the East
African Rift (e.g., Ethiopia; Acocella et al., 2002), but
also occur in areas of unusually high rates of localised
extension in convergent margin (e.g., Mayor Island,
New Zealand; Houghton et al., 1992) or intra-plate
oceanic islands (e.g., Canary Islands; Schmincke,
1967; Marti and Gudmundsson, 2000). Rhyolitic
calderas occur mostly in continental or continentalmargin areas where mild extension occurs, either
associated with a convergent plate boundary (e.g.,
Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand; Wilson et al.,
1995) or with rifting in continental crust (e.g., Rio
Grande Rift, south central USA; Elston, 1984).
Rhyolitic calderas have also been observed associated
with continental hotspots (e.g., Yellowstone, Wyom-
3. Terminology
In his classic publication on dCalderas and their
OriginT, Williams (1941) noted that bFew terms in the
volcanologists vocabulary have suffered more vicissitudes than the term dcalderaTQ, and this problem has
continued to the present day. Reck (1936) summarised
early usage and Williams (1941) summarised classifications used during the first part of the 20th century.
Williams classification (Table 1) was broad, and
included many different types of volcanic events.
Later, Williams and McBirney (1979) redefined
dcalderasT as blarge collapse depressions, more or less
circular or cirque-like in form, the diameter of which is
many times greater than any included ventQ, and all but
collapse calderas in Williams (1941) scheme were
excluded. In the 1980s, process was regarded as more
important, and Walker (1984) noted the significance of
Table 1
Comparison of classifications by Williams (1941), Williams and
McBirney (1979) and Lipman (1995)
Williams (1941)
Explosion
Collapse
Krakatau
Kilauea
Katmai
Cryptovolcanic
Glen Coe
Miscellaneous
Erosion
Volcanic graben
Summit
Sector
Volcanic vents or
fissure troughs
Major volcanotectonic depressions
Williams and
McBirney (1979)
Lipman (1995)
Krakatoan
Hawaiian
Katmai
Valles
Galapagos
Masaya
Atitlan
Plate (piston)
Piecemeal
Downsag
Trapdoor
Funnel
Fig. 1. Differences between (A) caldera, (B) cauldron and (C) ring structure. The examples used are: (A) Creede Caldera, Colorado (Bethke and
Hay, 2000); (B) Ossipee Cauldron, Carroll County, NH (Kingsley, 1931); (C) Kudaru Ring Structure, Northern Nigeria (Bain, 1934).
Fig. 2. (A) Collapse associated with three spatially overlapping calderas. If all three areas of collapse occur during one eruptive episode, the
resultant caldera is said to be piecemeal (see Section 7). If each collapse occurs after a period of time the result is a caldera complex. (B) Faults
utilised by early collapse events may be reactivated in successive events. The faultcaldera relationship can only be interpreted from thickness
relationships of ignimbrites that were deposited during the caldera forming events (e.g., Branney and Kokelaar, 1994).
erosional structure, as originally suggested by Williams (1941), and more recently used by Karatson et
al. (1999).
The distinction between a caldera and a caldera
complex may not be clear from structure alone (Fig.
2). There may be collapse at a number of loci during a
single eruptive episode, which will create a piecemeal
caldera (see Section 7). If however the overlapping
calderas form during eruptions of different ignimbrites
the result is a caldera complex (e.g., Taupo caldera
complex, New Zealand; Cole et al., 1998). Faults
utilised by early collapse events may be reactivated in
successive events. The faultcaldera relationship can
only be interpreted from thickness relationships of
ignimbrites (Fig. 2B) that were deposited during the
caldera forming events (i.e., if there is a great change
in thickness of one ignimbrite across a fault then it is
likely that the fault was reactivated during caldera
collapse; e.g., Branney and Kokelaar, 1994).
Collapse is not always immediately beneath the
erupting vent. In 1912, magma travelled over 10 km
from a magma source under Mt Katmai, Alaska, and
erupted as an ignimbrite from Novarupta (Hildreth,
1991), but the present 4 km3 caldera collapsed at Mt
Katmai. The caldera formed by magma draw down as
it migrated to Novarupta, in a situation more akin to
the lateral movement that occurs in Hawaiian volcanoes than classic explosive-style calderas.
The distinction between dcalderaT and dcauldronT is
not clear cut, and an argument could be put forward to
4. Anatomy of a caldera
The shape and size of calderas is variable. Some
calderas are near circular and have a simple history of
collapse (e.g., Reporoa, New Zealand; Nairn et al.,
1994, Beresford and Cole, 2000; Creede, CO, USA;
Bethke and Hay, 2000), while others are more rectilinear (e.g., Taupo, New Zealand; Cole et al., 1998;
Silent Canyon, USA; Ferguson et al., 1994). Size can
also vary from small dpit-cratersT (e.g., Halemaumau,
Hawaii; Decker, 1987) to very large collapse structures
(e.g., La Garita, Colorado, USA; Lipman, 2000a) and
many form part of caldera complexes.
An individual caldera may be considered in terms
of topographic and structural elements (Fig. 3A, B), as
identified by Lipman (1984, 1997, 2000b), including
(Fig. 3C): a collapse collar, inner topographic wall,
caldera floor, ring fault, landslide breccia and intracaldera ignimbrite. These features are described in
more detail in Lipman (2000b). The structural
boundary comprises that part of the caldera that has
collapsed by movement along faults, and topographic
boundary joins the high points that surround the
Fig. 3. (A) Schematic map of a typical resurgent piston-type caldera. (B) Block diagram of a typical resurgent piston-type caldera. (C)
Terminology of a classic piston collapse structure after Lipman (1997). A caldera may or may not have all of the labelled features.
5. Caldera development
Lipman (1984, 2000b) identifies a number of
stages in the development of a caldera:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
6. Examples of calderas
Although there is not a direct relationship between
composition of the eruptives and dtypesT of caldera, it
is a useful way of indicating variation. Features of
calderas associated with basaltic, peralkaline, andesiticdacitic and rhyolitic eruptions are given below:
Fig. 4. Cross-section of shield and caldera evolution at Hawaiian volcanoes (from Walker, 1988). The intruding magma and sills can expand the
shield thereby causing extension and collapse at the surface. These models assume the magma chamber (between the arrows) remains at a
constant depth beneath the edifice. Caldera formation may also be due to magma withdrawal. Extension due to magma intrusion may lead to an
unstable situation which, along with magma withdrawal, leads to caldera formation.
Fig. 5. The 6845 yr BP eruption of Mt Mazama and formation of Crater Lake. Eruption began with the extrusion of lava flows and domes on the
flanks of the cone. The climactic phase started with eruption of pyroclastic material (Wineglass Tuff) from a central vent. Caldera collapse
occurred coherently and in a piston-like manner and eruption took place from a ring of vents at the margins of the collapsing block. (From
Bacon, 1983).
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Fig. 6. (A) Generalised map of the Valles and Toledo calderas, New Mexico. Asterisks are vent locations for intra-caldera domes and flows.
Stippled pattern indicates rhyolite domes associated with the Toledo caldera (from Heiken et al., 1986). (B) Schematic cross-section of the Valles
caldera and Pajarito Fault Zone, based on deep drill holes and gravity data (from Self et al., 1986).
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Fig. 7. Schematic map of the Taupo Volcanic Zone (TVZ), New Zealand, showing location of the rhyolitic calderas and caldera complexes.
1=Rotorua, 2=Okataina, 3=Kapenga, 4=Reporoa, 5=Mangakino, 6=Maroa, 7=Whakamaru, 8=Taupo. After Wilson et al. (1995). Triangles
represent andesitedacite volcanoes. Inset: A=Andesite dominated part of TVZ; R=Rhyolite dominated part of TVZ.
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Fig. 8. Generalised map of the Central San Juan caldera complex, showing caldera topographic margins, resurgent domes and caldera related
granitic intrusions (from Lipman et al., 1997).
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Fig. 9. Four end member mechanisms of caldera collapse: (A) piston/plate, (B) piecemeal, (C) trapdoor, (D) downsag. The origin of the socalled dchaoticT and dfunnelT calderas is discussed in the text.
7.4. Downsag
This type of collapse occurs where ring faults
either do not form or do not penetrate the ground
surface (Figs. 9D and 10). Instead some or all of the
rocks overlying the magma chamber deform by
bending without fracture (Walker, 1984; Milner et
al., 2002). There are no distinct caldera walls and the
ground surface dips gently towards the caldera
collapse centre (Walker, 1984). Features of downsag
often occur in association with other collapse processes including mild flexuring and fracturing (Fig.
10) immediately prior to formation of a well defined
faulted caldera boundary, processes that accompany
inception of faulting in brittle upper crustal rocks,
incomplete ring fault subsidence, (e.g., hinge of
trapdoor collapse), and late inward dipping tilting
and fracturing of the topographic wall after collapse
(Branney, 1995; Lipman, 2000b). Other methods that
can lead to a downsag morphology are forced folding
where flat-lying strata deform over a rigid, brittly
deforming caldera floor (Milner et al., 2002) and the
formation of a tilted block towards the margin of
deformation (Roche et al., 2000; see Section 8.2).
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Fig. 10. During downsag the ground surface may warp downwards to generate a downsag caldera (A). Downsag must be accompanied by
extension and flexure towards the margins of collapse that may lead to the development of tension fractures. (B) Downsag may be generated by
(i) downwarping of the entire thickness of crust overlying a magma chamber, (ii) just at the margins of a brittly fracturing collapse structure
(from Roche et al., 2000), or (iii) by the force folding of soft rocks overlying a rigid faulted basement (after Ameen, 1990). Downwarping of the
entire crust above a magma chamber is unlikely to occur particularly in the short time that a caldera takes to form. Downsag is much more likely
to occur by methods (ii) and (iii).
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Fig. 11. (A) The result of one of Roche et al.s (2000) laboratory
experiments. Note the caldera block bounding fault is outward
dipping and reverse at the surface steepening to vertical at depth and
the conical block forming in the subsiding caldera floor block. With
increasing depth to the bmagma chamberQ more conical blocks are
created during caldera formation. Note also that faults bounding the
collapsing block dip outwards at shallow depths. (B) A sketch of the
tilted block found in Roche et al. (2000) analogue experiments. The
caldera bring faultQ propagates progressively into the tilted block as
subsidence proceeds. The tilted block may account for downsag
structures seen towards the margins of caldera collapse. Funnel
shaped calderas result with small or deep chambers as the tilted
block takes up a greater proportion of the surface.
17
Fig. 12. Comparisons between mining (A and B), and ice (C)
collapse pits and calderas. If the relaxation zone reaches the surface,
a depression will form akin to a downsag caldera (A), if it doesnt
the ground surface remains unchanged unless the cavity is large
enough and deep in which case a central fault bounded block forms
(B) and can collapse like a piston. (A) and (B) are from Scandone
(1990) and (C) is from Branney (1995).
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11. Summary
!
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Acknowledgements
Many people have contributed to ideas in this
review paper. Particular thanks go to Dr. Michael
Branney and Dr. Peter Lipman, with whom the
authors have had many useful discussions. D.M.M.
and K.D.S. were funded by a University of Canterbury Doctoral Scholarship and the Mason Trust and
D.M.M. by a Claude McCarthy Fellowship. J.W.C.
received a University of Canterbury Research Grant
(U6314) towards the cost of the study. The paper was
reviewed by Valerio Acocella and an anonymous
reviewer, to whom the authors are most grateful.
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