Infrasound has many applications in volcano
monitoring… specifically it has the ability to facilitate remote tracking
of eruptive activity, which can be used to interpret trends in
eruptions. An immediate merit of
infrasound monitoring is that high-amplitude acoustic energy is a
direct response to large perturbations of the atmosphere, which often
occur during explosive volcanic degassing.
Thus infrasound can be used to distinguish between
sub-surface seismicity and the seismicity associated with an eruption. It also has the following advantages, most
of which are intuitive:
1)Can
record continuously and at low bandwidth
2)Can
record during night-time and inclement weather
3)Line-of
sight to the vent is not necessary for infrasonic frequencies
4)Can
be used to assess relative intensity of volcanic eruptions