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Professor Sara Mana and her collaborators published a novel study focused on the emplacement mechanism and flow dynamics of small dyke swarms to better constrain the forces controlling dyke propagation and thus reconstruct the emplacement history of the volcanic system.

This study presents a multidisciplinary analysis of Mount Calanna (Mount Etna, Italy) where a total of 11 dykes were sampled. To infer the magma flow direction, we used Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility (AMS) and compared the results to the Shape Preferred Orientation (SPO) of the plagioclase crystal fabric. To quantify the relative timing of dyke emplacement, and to characterize the magma plumbing system, we also used the palaeomagnetic and geochemical signature of the sampled dykes.

The combined structural and geochemical analyses suggest the Mount Calanna dyke swarm is a coherent intrusive complex associated with a phase of activity of Ancient Alkaline Center (AAC), with Mount Calanna representing an example of the uppermost portion of a shallow plumbing system in which intrusion orientations are controlled by regional tectonics.

Shajahan, R., Harris, A., Mana, S., Nicotra, E., Test, C.R., de Vries, B.V.W. and Zanella, E., 2024. Emplacement and flow dynamics in a small volcanic dyke swarm: The example of Mount Calanna (Etna, Italy). Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, p.108069