Newsflash #6: CO₂ flux survey, 9. May - 8 June 2017

CO₂ flux survey, 9. May - 8 June 2017

Techniques to measure diffuse degassing, as CO₂, at the surface provide an important tool for the determination and quantification of volcanic gases and their pathways in the shallow depth subsurface.

Currently, a detailed CO₂ flux survey in an area 2.5x6 km within the geothermal production field of the Los Humeros caldera is carried out by a team of four people (two from GFZ and two students from UMSNH).

The study focuses on the structural control on migration pathways of volcanic gases to identify and assess permeable fault segments or hidden discontinuities within major fault zones. In Los Humeros the current CO₂ measurements contribute to understand the fault zone behavior in much more detail than it was known before which ultimately influences the understanding of the development of the Los Humeros geothermal reservoir.

In the current field campaign, CO₂ is measured by the accumulation chamber method from West Systems in a regular narrow grid.