Celso's Homepage
Welcome to my corner of the web. I'm a geophysics PhD candidate in the Volcano Seismology program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
My advisor is Dr. Stephen McNutt, of the Alaska Volcano Observatory.
I'm interested in what volcanic earthquakes tell us about what's going on in a volcano, and what it is likely to do. For my thesis work, I'm looking at the tremor activity that occurred under Okmok Volcano, Alaska between 2003 and 2005. I'm also investigating the tremor signals from the recent eruption in the summer of 2008.
Besides investigating tremor signals, I'm interested in automation and visualization. With any given eruption, enormous volumes of data can be generated: photographs and video, temperature data, satellite images, seismic, GPS, InSAR, Acoustic, Infrasound, etc., etc. I'm interested in methods of collating and presenting these disparate data sources in a manner that makes the data traversable and visceral. That is, presenting the deata in a way that makes it easier to understand and to highlight moments / locations / activity of interest.
One example, from the recent Augustine eruption, can be found here. This video combines a series of photos from a homer-based night-vision camera (that can sense near infra-red) with the seismic signals from a pair of stations on either side of the island. If you watch the movie with quality headphones, you will be able to hear the difference between rockfalls that take differing routes down the mountain.
I've used a new web-based product called photosynth to create three-dimensional visuals of a few of the volcanoes of interest. These were created from field photographs that I and others took. These can be found at photosynth.net
Since embarking upon my graduate career, the Alaska Volcano Observatory and the Geophysical Institute have provided me with the opportunity to install seismic networks or perform maintenance on volcanos from Augustine to Little Sitkin. Additionally, I've helped with a project in Colima, and visited volcanoes in Kamchatka.
Over the past several years, I've also had the opportunity to help with the monitoring and response to eruptions along the aleutian arc. Some examples:
- 2006 Augustine Eruption
- 2007 Pavlof Eruption
- 2007 Veniaminof Eruptions
- 2008 Okmok Eruption
More information about what I do -- including information on my MATLAB scripts-- can be found on my studies page.
I moved to Alaska from Flagstaff, AZ, where I completed my Bachelor's degree in Physics at NAU. I've lived on both coasts, and have traveled to and through man parts of this country. Photos and stories from my journeys can be found here and elsewhere on the web
Links to other graduate student's pages
Check out my blog for more recent updates whereiscelso.blogspot.com