Conference: AGU Chapman 2025 in Hilo, Hawai'i - Caldera-Rift Volcanoes

This conference grant will provide critically needed financial support for non-tenured early career researchers to attend the AGU Chapman Conference on Caldera-Forming Eruptions at Basaltic Volcanoes, taking place in Hilo on February 9-14, 2025. Participant support costs (travel, registration, lodging) cover the attendance of >25 early career researchers, including postdoctoral researchers, graduate and undergraduate students from Hawaiian and other US-based institutions.

This conference builds upon a prior Chapman conference held in Hawai'i in 2012, which examined the state of knowledge about Hawaiian volcanism and also a recent review article on the 2018 eruption (Anderson et al. 2024). The big picture questions driving the conference include: (1) What are the similarities and differences among basaltic Caldera Rift Eruptions (CRE)? (2) How is magma transported in basaltic rift volcanoes, and how do magmatic- tectonic systems interact before and during large CREs? (3) How and why do basaltic calderas collapse? (4) What are the hazards due to large CREs, and can these eruptions be effectively forecast? (5) How do large CREs alter volcanic systems, and how do they recover?

Tackling these questions will promote scientific progress by aiding in synthesizing the community’s understanding of some of Earth’s most active volcanic systems, by identifying outstanding open questions, and planning future research directions.

This conference grant supports scientists in their early stages of professional development, from college undergraduates to researchers who recently graduated with doctoral degrees to attend the AGU Chapman Conference on Caldera-Forming Eruptions at Basaltic Volcanoes. The aim is to provide these early career scientists a highly interactive conference that will serve as a springboard for them to (1) get to know and better understand some of Earth’s most active volcanic systems, (2) have an opportunity to meet and mingle with volcano researchers from all over the world, and (3) inspire or reinforce volcano career paths, particularly in the case of college students.

The funds obtained through this grant promote equity and inclusivity in science by sponsoring students and researchers that could not otherwise attend because of the significant costs associated with registration, travel and lodging. Workshops, discussion panels, working groups, professional development seminars, and non-technical social events will encourage community- and network-building and both formal and informal interactions among researchers.

A key aspect of this conference is its interdisciplinary nature, with specialists from very different fields coming together to focus on key unanswered questions about volcanoes in Hawai'i and elsewhere in the world. Supporting attendance of scientists in the making will help foster a future generation of volcanologists that can better understand and interpret vast, complex data streams to better anticipate volcanic eruptions and their hazardous impacts on local communities.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.