Volcanic crisis reveals coupled magma system at Santorini and Kolumbo

Marius P. Isken (), Jens Karstens (), Paraskevi Nomikou, Michelle Maree Parks, Vincent Drouin, Eleonora Rivalta, Gareth J. Crutchley, Mahmud Haghshenas Haghighi, Emilie E. E. Hooft, Simone Cesca, Thomas R. Walter, Sebastian Hainzl, Joachim Saul, Dimitris Anastasiou, Kostas Raptakis, Nikolai M. Shapiro, Jannes Münchmeyer, Quentin Higueret, Jean Soubestre, Florent Brenguier, Rebeckah S. Hufstetler, Kaisa R. Autumn, Maria Tsakiri, Dietrich Lange, Heidrun Kopp, Morelia Urlaub, María Blanch Jover, Jonas Preine, Christian Hübscher, Mahdi Motagh, Daniel Müller, Torsten Dahm and Christian Berndt
Additional contact information
Marius P. Isken: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Jens Karstens: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
Paraskevi Nomikou: National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
Michelle Maree Parks: Icelandic Meteorological Office
Vincent Drouin: Icelandic Meteorological Office
Eleonora Rivalta: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Gareth J. Crutchley: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
Mahmud Haghshenas Haghighi: Leibniz University Hannover
Emilie E. E. Hooft: University of Oregon
Simone Cesca: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Thomas R. Walter: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Sebastian Hainzl: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Joachim Saul: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Dimitris Anastasiou: National Technical University of Athens
Kostas Raptakis: National Technical University of Athens
Nikolai M. Shapiro: ISTerre
Jannes Münchmeyer: ISTerre
Quentin Higueret: ISTerre
Jean Soubestre: ISTerre
Florent Brenguier: ISTerre
Rebeckah S. Hufstetler: University of Oregon
Kaisa R. Autumn: University of Oregon
Maria Tsakiri: National Technical University of Athens
Dietrich Lange: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
Heidrun Kopp: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
Morelia Urlaub: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
María Blanch Jover: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
Jonas Preine: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Christian Hübscher: University of Hamburg
Mahdi Motagh: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Daniel Müller: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Torsten Dahm: GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
Christian Berndt: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel

Nature, 2025, vol. 645, issue 8082, 939-945

Abstract: Abstract Volcanic crises, driven by renewed magma inflow and migration, result in surface deformation and seismicity that can provide unique insights into the structure of volcanic systems and magmatic processes. Although the highly explosive volcanoes of Santorini and Kolumbo1,2 in the Greek Aegean Sea are just 7 km apart, their potentially coupled deep magmatic feeding systems are only poorly understood3,4. The 2025 volcano–tectonic crisis of Santorini simultaneously affected both volcanic centres, providing insights into a complex, multistorage feeder system. Here we integrate onshore and marine seismological data with geodetic measurements to reconstruct magma migration before and during the crisis. Gradual inflation in the Santorini caldera, beginning in mid-2024, preceded the January 2025 intrusion of a magma-filled dike sourced from a mid-crustal reservoir beneath Kolumbo, indicating a link between the two volcanoes. Joint inversion of ground and satellite-based deformation data indicates that approximately 0.31 km3 of magma intruded as an approximately 13-km-long dike, reactivating principal regional faults and arresting 3–5 km below the seafloor. The 2024–2025 resurgence of magmatic activity beneath both volcanic centres and their apparent coupling provides insights into the dynamic interplay of magma storage, transport and reservoir failure beneath neighbouring volcanoes.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09525-7

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