WOVO.org

OVSP  scientific staff:            

Volcano Monitoring
Adriana Ortega Estupiñán  -  Physics
Anita Patricia Ponce V.  -  Civil Engineer
Betty Silva Parra  -  Physics
Carlos Andrés Laverde  -  Informatics area
Diego M. Gómez Martínez  -  Civil Engineer
Edgar Antonio Muñoz – Physics
Lourdes Narváez Medina  -  Civil Engineer
Richard Andrés Mier – Systems Engineer
Roberto A. Torres Corredor  -  Civil Engineer
 
Other institutional projects
Javier Mauricio Narváez – Mining Engineer
Rafael Cárdenas Santacruz  -  Geodetic Engineer
Pablo Chamorro C.  -  Civil engineer (Informatics area)
 
OVSP  support Staff:
Carlos Alberto Estrada  -  Operative area
Byron Fernando Gámez  -  Operative area
Hernán Zambrano A.  -  Administrative area
Luz Elena Chaves  -  Secretary ́s office
 
Other agreements:
Federal Institute for Geosciencies and Natural Resources – BGR from Germany. 

INGEOMINAS has since 1997 an ongoing common project named the Multiparameter Galeras Station. 

Contact at BGR:  Dr.  Malte Ibs-Von Seht (m.ibs@bgr.de)
NOVAC project ("Network for Observation of Volcanic and Atmospheric Change"). 

INGEOMINAS is part of this project which started on October 2005, including the volcanoes Galeras and Ruiz.
Nariño University:  INGEOMINAS has annual agreements with this University in order to have permanent students from the basic science disciplines which support the 24 hour permanent volcano monitoring.

 

OVSP - Main subjects 
The Volcanological and Seismological Observatory of Pasto (OVSP), which belong to INGEOMINAS (the Colombian Geological and Mining Service), is located in Pasto, a city with a total population of about 350.000 inhabitants, situated 9 km East from Galeras
volcano. The OVSP was installed in 1989 when the volcano began a reactivation period after almost 45 years of quiescence.  On the other hand, besides Galeras, the OVSP is incharge of monitoring other active volcanoes in Nariño Province like as:  Chiles, Cerro
Negro, Cumbal, Azufral and Doña Juana. Due to the high level of risk related with some areas around Galeras, particularly where
around 8000 people lives permanently, and because it is considered one of the most active volcanoes in Colombia, the OVSP has a permanent monitoring network on this volcano and makes short monitoring on the other mentioned volcanoes once or twice per year.  For 2008, INGEOMINAS is planning to install a total network of 9 short period, three component, seismic telemetered stations on these volcanoes.  As part of the National Prevention and Attention System, the OVSP also gives technical support to the Regional
and local Disaster Committees. According with Presidencial and Gubernamental determination, since 2004, INGEOMINAS is the new authority in mining aspects.  Due to this, OVSP was delegated as a contact point between the miner and the regionals of INGEOMINAS in the cities of Bogotá and Cali.  The main task in this way is to provide the basic information and formats to the miner, receive their requeriments and send those documents to Bogotá or Cali for the next steps of analysis.
For the continuos monitoring of Galeras volcano, the OVSP has a network composed by different kind of sensors including areas like as: seismology, deformation, electromagnetic, weather, gaschemistry, thermo images, etc.  Some of these stations have been destroyed by the resent eruptive activity on this volcano (2004 – 2005), and then replaced.

 

Seismology
The standar seismic network at Galeras volcano is composed by seven telemetered stations, vertical component, natural period of 1.0 seconds.  One of these stations (Urcunina) has 3-component seismometer.  In addition, two broadband stations are installed one of them including a Guralp accelerometer (MOU with BGR). Since 1997, INGEOMINAS has a Memorandum of Understanding with the BGR (Bundesanstalt fuer Geowissenschften und Rohsoffe) related to Galeras, which allow the OVSP to increase the monitoring network including broadband stations (three), electromagnetic measurements, weather data, thermo images, physico-chemical parameter most of them using spread spectrum telemetry.  However, the eruptive Galeras activity which began around July, 2004 caused damages in most of the stations located around the active cone (inside 1.5 Km in radio), particularly the electromagnetic and gas stations. The MOU with BGR have included the realization of three seminars and several small courses; also includes the interchange of scientific staff among the two institutions.  Several papers have been published in these years of cooperation, particularly related with seismology and gas themes.

 

Ground deformations
The deformation network at Galeras volcano consists of three electronic telemetered tilmeters and eight short leveling lines.  Mostly and due to morphological reasons, these stations cover the northeast flank of the volcano.

 

Geochemistry
The geochemical monitoring at Galeras, Cumbal and Azufral volcanoes include measurements as:
• gases from soils at volcano’s edifice;
• gases from fumaroles;
• chemical components of hot springs.
On Galeras volcano there are 21 stations for monitoring Radon-222 and CO2, emitted from soils.  Actually, there is a classification of all waters of thermal springs, locales within a radio of 8.0 km from the volcano’s craters.  Using the COSPEC mobile method, SO2
measurements are conducted around the edifice of Galeras Volcano. Since 2005, INGEOMINAS began its participation on the NOVAC project, which is a 4-year scientific project funded by European Union. It started on 1 October, 2005. NOVAC is the abbreviation of "Network for Observation of Volcanic and Atmospheric Change".  The main objective of this project is to establish a network for measurements of the emissions of gases -- in particular SO2 and BrO -- and aerosols by volcanoes, and to use the data from this network for risk assessment and volcanological research, both locally and on a regional and global scale. The global volcano monitoring network encompasses observatories of 15 volcanoes from five continents, including some of the most active and strongest degassing volcanoes in the world.  Galeras Volcano is one of the volcanoes included in the NOVAC project.
 
Information updated December 2007

 

More information on ingeominas_pasto_dic_2007.pdf