Photo: NOAA Vents Program
Scientists led by Andrea Verolino of Paris-Saclay University have discovered 73 previously unknown volcanic calderas on the ocean floor using artificial intelligence, according to ScienceAlert.
Calderas are large crater-like depressions formed when a volcano erupts enough magma for the ground above its underground chamber to collapse. While some are long extinct, others remain part of active volcanic systems capable of erupting again.
"Our dataset fills a major observational gap and provides a reproducible, updatable framework for characterizing submarine volcanoes, highlighting the need to include underwater calderas in future global volcanic assessments," the researchers said.
Most of Earth's volcanic activity occurs beneath the oceans, where tectonic plates continuously diverge, collide, and slide beneath one another. These active boundaries allow magma to rise to the seafloor, creating underwater volcanoes.
Although most submarine eruptions are relatively mild basaltic events along mid-ocean ridges, some can be highly explosive. One of the most powerful recent examples was the 2022 eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano, which generated atmospheric shock waves, tsunamis, and widespread destruction across the Pacific.
To identify previously unknown calderas, researchers adapted an AI algorithm originally trained to detect impact craters on Mars and applied it to bathymetric maps of the ocean floor.
The algorithm initially identified more than 87,000 possible formations. After applying multiple filters and manually reviewing the remaining candidates, the team narrowed the list to 78 potential calderas.
Five of those sites had already been identified, leaving 73 newly discovered underwater calderas. The findings significantly expand scientists' understanding of submarine volcanic systems and could improve future monitoring of potentially hazardous underwater volcanoes.
