Martha Gabriela Gomez Vasconcelos

Citation

Thesis Title
Paleoseismology, seismic hazard and volcano-tectonic interactions in the Tongariro Volcanic Centre, New Zealand

Read article at Massey Research Online:

At the southern Taupo Rift, crustal extension is accommodated by normal faults and magma intrusions, and the Tongariro Volcanic Centre coexists with faults from the Ruapehu and Tongariro areas. This close coexistence and volcanic vent alignment parallel to the regional faults has always raised the question of their possible interaction. Mrs Gómez Vasconcelos researched the active faults in the southern Taupo Rift and analysed the spatio-temporal associations between volcanic and seismic activity. Data of the Upper Waikato Stream, Wahianoa, Waihi and Poutu faults formed the core of the analysis. She found that short-term variations in fault slip-rates and volcanic activity for the last 100 kilo annum in the Tongariro Volcanic Centre may have been influenced by static stress transfer between adjacent faults and magma intrusions, or by fluctuations in magma input through time. Data gathered in her research provides an update to the National Seismic Hazard Model for New Zealand.

Supervisors
Professor Shane Cronin
Dr Pilar Villamor
Associate Professor Bob Stewart
Associate Professor Alan Palmer
Professor Jonathan Procter