Muon tomography applied to active volcanoes

TL;DR

This paper discusses the use of muon tomography, a non-invasive imaging technique, for studying active volcanoes, highlighting recent results from the Lesser Antilles, especially the Soufrière of Guadeloupe.

Contribution

It presents recent advancements and applications of muon tomography in volcanology, emphasizing its advantages in hazardous and inaccessible environments.

Findings

Successful imaging of volcanic structures in the Lesser Antilles

Demonstrated advantages over traditional methods in dangerous zones

Enhanced understanding of volcano internal density distributions

Abstract

Muon tomography is a generic imaging method using the differential absorption of cosmic muons by matter. The measured contrast in the muons flux reflects the matter density contrast as it does in conventional medical imaging. The applications to volcanology present may advantadges induced by the features of the target itself: limited access to dangerous zones, impossible use of standard boreholes information, harsh environmental conditions etc. The Diaphane project is one of the largest and leading collaboration in the field and the present article summarizes recent results collected on the Lesser Antilles, with a special emphasis on the Soufri\`ere of Guadeloupe.