Our geophysical study about the Corbetti volcano-hosted geothermal system in the East African Rift is now published. The Corbetti geothermal prospect, located in Ethiopia, is one of several places in the region considered to be suitable for sustainable electricity generation. We analysed Magnetotelluric data to obtain the first 3-D subsurface electrical conductivity model of the volcano's magmatic and hydrothermal systems using 3-D geophysical imaging tools developed by researchers at GeoMet.
The model, visualized in the attached animation, provides a highly detailed 3-D image of Corbetti's coupled magmatic and hydrothermal systems, and is vital for assessing the volcanic hazards risks and geothermal exploration decisions. Another exciting showcase which demonstrates a critical role played by modern geophysics in understanding volcanoes and their associated geothermal systems.
This work is the result of a fruitful collaboration between University of Cologne, ETH Zurich, and Reykjavik Geothermal.
More details about the study can be found in the open-access paper