Monitoring deformations of the Sciara del Fuoco (Stromboli) through ground-based radar interferometry

Volcanic activity is often associated to flank deformation and a remote sensing approach can overcome the difficulties due to the installation of traditional in situ instrumentation for its monitoring. A ground-based sar interferometer (gb-Insar) is able to provide accurate maps of displacement with high spatial and temporal resolution from a 1-2 km distance. The gb-Insar system installed since February 2003 in front of the Stromboli morphological depression known as Sciara del Fuoco (SdF), made it possible to follow the dynamics of the volcano and to identify precursors of major eruptions and explosions. The effectiveness of this technique is demonstrated through examples obtained during both the major events and the long term when the quiescent phase of the volcano prevails.