Analysis of Pre-, Co- and Post-Eruption Deformation of the 2018 Episode of the Kilauea Volcano using Persistent Scatterer Interferometry

Abstract:

Persistent Scatterer Interferometry (PSI) is a powerful method of differential Synthetic Aperture Radar interferometry (DInSAR) to process the InSAR data and derive the regional deformation due to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions by automatically selecting the persistent Scatterers (which produce high coherence) in the region. In this study, we performed the PSI analysis using the Stanford Method for Persistent Scatterers (StaMPS) algorithm and determined the Line-of-Sight (LOS) deformation prior, during and after the eruption of the Kilauea volcano in 2018. The fissure eruption started in the first week of May in the Leilani Estates and lasted until the first week of August, with approximately 3.78 km² new land added to the Big Island on the eastern side (Babu et al., 2019). We used a total of 17 SAR images acquired by Sentinel-1A satellite between March and September 2018. We generated the time series at five key locations throughout the southern and western Big Island (From Mauna Loa to Eastern Tip of the Big Island) to determine the regional correlation of deformation relative to the eruption at the East Rift Zone. Results from the PSI processing show the regional subsidence on the Big Island, indicating the deflation of the southern and western part of the Big Island during the eruption at the East Rift Zone.