Thermal history of Phlegraean Fields (Italy) in the last 50,000 years: A schematic numerical model

Abstract

An attempt is made to reproduce by numerical simulation the last 50,000 years of the Phlegraean Fields volcanic history in terms of a magma chamber with volume progressively reduced by magma extraction to the surface and without refillings from depth. Since the aim is just to verify the plausibility of such an assumption, attention is focused on the major volcanic events, and a rather crude model is adopted. It turns out that the main features of the Phlegraean Fields thermal history, namely the Campanian Ignimbrite, the yellow tuffs emission and the high temperatures measured in the geothermal wells drilled inside the caldera, can reasonably be reproduced under the not-refilled-system assumption. The magmatic body is predicted to have an average temperature of 1000°C at present.