Emily Montgomery-Brown
As a research geophysicist focusing on volcano geodesy, I analyze ground- and satellite-based data to explore how magma moves underground, and discover other ways volcanoes deform.
Prior to joining the USGS, I was a visiting researcher at the Earthquake Research Institute at the University of Tokyo studying hydrothermal deformation at Miyake Jima volcano and an NSF post-doctoral fellow at the University of Wisconsin studying the seismic signals associated with flank sector failure at Kilauea volcano.
Professional Experience
Co-chair of the joint IAVCEI/IAG Volcano Geodesy Commission
Prior AGU Geodesy section OSPA Coordinator
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. in Geophysics, Stanford University, September 2008
Thesis Title: Time dependent deformation of Kilauea volcano, Hawaii Advisor: Paul Segall
M.S. in Geophysics, Stanford University, June 2005
B.S. with High Honors in Geology with minor in Mathematics, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, May 2002
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union
IAVCEI
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 29
Magma reservoir failure and the onset of caldera collapse at Kīlauea volcano in 2018
Caldera-forming eruptions are among Earths most hazardous natural phenomena, yet the architecture of subcaldera magma reservoirs and the conditions that trigger collapse are poorly understood. Observations from the formation of a 0.8cubic kilometer basaltic caldera at Klauea Volcano in 2018 included the draining of an active lava lake, which provided a window into pressure decrease in...
Authors
Kyle R. Anderson, Ingrid A. Johanson, Matthew R. Patrick, Mengyang Gu, Paul Segall, Michael P. Poland, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Asta Miklius
Regional Global Navigation Satellite System networks for crustal deformation monitoring
Regional networks of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) stations cover seismically and volcanically active areas throughout the United States. Data from these networks have been used to produce high‐precision, three‐component velocity fields covering broad geographic regions as well as position time series that track time‐varying crustal deformation. This information has...
Authors
Jessica R. Murray, Noel Bartlow, Yehuda Bock, Benjamin A. Brooks, James H. Foster, Jeffery T. Freymueller, William R. Hammond, Kathleen Hodgkinson, Ingrid A. Johanson, Alberto Lopez-Venegas, Doerte Mann, Glen Mattioli, Timothy Melbourne, David Mencin, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Mark Hunter Murray, Robert Smalley, Valerie I. Thomas
Interseismic quiescence and triggered slip of active normal faults of Kīlauea Volcano’s south flank during 2001-2018
The mobile south flank of Kīlauea Volcano hosts two normal fault systems, the Koa'e fault system (KFS) and the Hilina fault system (HFS). In historical time, at least three M>6.5 earthquakes have occurred on the basal detachment of the Kīlauea Volcano's south flank, with the most recent being the 4 May 2018 M6.9 earthquake. Here we analyze kinematic Global Positioning System data...
Authors
Kang Wang, Hayden MacArthur, Ingrid A. Johanson, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Michael P. Poland, Eric C. Cannon, Matthew A. D'Alessio, Roland Burgmann
Rate of magma supply beneath Mammoth Mountain, California based on helium isotopes and CO2 emissions
Mammoth Mountain, California, has exhibited unrest over the past ~30 years, characterized by seismicity over a broad range of depths, elevated 3He/4He ratios in fumarolic gas, and large-scale diffuse CO2 emissions. This activity has been attributed to magmatic intrusion, but minimal ground deformation and the presence of a shallow crustal gas reservoir beneath Mammoth Mountain pose a...
Authors
Jennifer L. Lewicki, William C. Evans, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Margaret T. Mangan, John W. King, Andrew G. Hunt
Snowmelt-triggered earthquake swarms at the margin of Long Valley Caldera, California
Fluids are well known to influence earthquakes, yet rarely are earthquakes convincingly linked to precipitation. Weak modulation or limited data often leads to ambiguous interpretations. In contrast, here we find that shallow seismicity in the Sierra Nevada range near Long Valley Caldera is strongly modulated by snowmelt. Over 33 years, shallow seismicity rates were ~37 times higher...
Authors
Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, David R. Shelly, Paul A. Hsieh
The 2018 rift eruption and summit collapse of Kilauea Volcano
In 2018, Kīlauea Volcano experienced its largest lower East Rift Zone (LERZ) eruption and caldera collapse in at least 200 years. After collapse of the Pu'u 'Ō'ō vent on 30 April, magma propagated downrift. Eruptive fissures opened in the LERZ on 3 May, eventually extending ~6.8 km. A 4 May earthquake (M6.9) produced ~5 m of fault slip. Lava erupted at rates exceeding 100 m3/s...
Authors
Christina A. Neal, Steven Brantley, Loren Antolik, Janet Babb, Matthew Alexander Burgess, Michael Cappos, Jefferson Chang, Sarah Conway, Liliana G. Desmither, Peter Dotray, Tamar Elias, Pauline Fukunaga, Steven Fuke, Ingrid A. Johanson, Kevan Kamibayashi, James P. Kauahikaua, R. Lopaka Lee, S. Pekalib, Asta Miklius, Brian Shiro, Don Swanson, Patricia A. Nadeau, Michael H. Zoeller, Paul G. Okubo, Carolyn Parcheta, Matthew R. Patrick, William Tollett, Frank Trusdell, Edward F. Younger, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Kyle R. Anderson, Michael P. Poland, Jessica L. Ball, Joseph A. Bard, Michelle L. Coombs, Hannah R. Dietterich, Christoph Kern, Weston A. Thelen, Peter F. Cervelli, Tim R. Orr, Bruce F. Houghton, Cheryl Gansecki, Richard W. Hazlett, Paul Lundgren, Angie Diefenbach, Allan Lerner, Greg Waite, Peter J. Kelly, Laura Clor, Cynthia A. Werner, Katherine M. Mulliken, Gary B. Fisher, David Damby
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 29
Magma reservoir failure and the onset of caldera collapse at Kīlauea volcano in 2018
Caldera-forming eruptions are among Earths most hazardous natural phenomena, yet the architecture of subcaldera magma reservoirs and the conditions that trigger collapse are poorly understood. Observations from the formation of a 0.8cubic kilometer basaltic caldera at Klauea Volcano in 2018 included the draining of an active lava lake, which provided a window into pressure decrease in...
Authors
Kyle R. Anderson, Ingrid A. Johanson, Matthew R. Patrick, Mengyang Gu, Paul Segall, Michael P. Poland, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Asta Miklius
Regional Global Navigation Satellite System networks for crustal deformation monitoring
Regional networks of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) stations cover seismically and volcanically active areas throughout the United States. Data from these networks have been used to produce high‐precision, three‐component velocity fields covering broad geographic regions as well as position time series that track time‐varying crustal deformation. This information has...
Authors
Jessica R. Murray, Noel Bartlow, Yehuda Bock, Benjamin A. Brooks, James H. Foster, Jeffery T. Freymueller, William R. Hammond, Kathleen Hodgkinson, Ingrid A. Johanson, Alberto Lopez-Venegas, Doerte Mann, Glen Mattioli, Timothy Melbourne, David Mencin, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Mark Hunter Murray, Robert Smalley, Valerie I. Thomas
Interseismic quiescence and triggered slip of active normal faults of Kīlauea Volcano’s south flank during 2001-2018
The mobile south flank of Kīlauea Volcano hosts two normal fault systems, the Koa'e fault system (KFS) and the Hilina fault system (HFS). In historical time, at least three M>6.5 earthquakes have occurred on the basal detachment of the Kīlauea Volcano's south flank, with the most recent being the 4 May 2018 M6.9 earthquake. Here we analyze kinematic Global Positioning System data...
Authors
Kang Wang, Hayden MacArthur, Ingrid A. Johanson, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Michael P. Poland, Eric C. Cannon, Matthew A. D'Alessio, Roland Burgmann
Rate of magma supply beneath Mammoth Mountain, California based on helium isotopes and CO2 emissions
Mammoth Mountain, California, has exhibited unrest over the past ~30 years, characterized by seismicity over a broad range of depths, elevated 3He/4He ratios in fumarolic gas, and large-scale diffuse CO2 emissions. This activity has been attributed to magmatic intrusion, but minimal ground deformation and the presence of a shallow crustal gas reservoir beneath Mammoth Mountain pose a...
Authors
Jennifer L. Lewicki, William C. Evans, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Margaret T. Mangan, John W. King, Andrew G. Hunt
Snowmelt-triggered earthquake swarms at the margin of Long Valley Caldera, California
Fluids are well known to influence earthquakes, yet rarely are earthquakes convincingly linked to precipitation. Weak modulation or limited data often leads to ambiguous interpretations. In contrast, here we find that shallow seismicity in the Sierra Nevada range near Long Valley Caldera is strongly modulated by snowmelt. Over 33 years, shallow seismicity rates were ~37 times higher...
Authors
Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, David R. Shelly, Paul A. Hsieh
The 2018 rift eruption and summit collapse of Kilauea Volcano
In 2018, Kīlauea Volcano experienced its largest lower East Rift Zone (LERZ) eruption and caldera collapse in at least 200 years. After collapse of the Pu'u 'Ō'ō vent on 30 April, magma propagated downrift. Eruptive fissures opened in the LERZ on 3 May, eventually extending ~6.8 km. A 4 May earthquake (M6.9) produced ~5 m of fault slip. Lava erupted at rates exceeding 100 m3/s...
Authors
Christina A. Neal, Steven Brantley, Loren Antolik, Janet Babb, Matthew Alexander Burgess, Michael Cappos, Jefferson Chang, Sarah Conway, Liliana G. Desmither, Peter Dotray, Tamar Elias, Pauline Fukunaga, Steven Fuke, Ingrid A. Johanson, Kevan Kamibayashi, James P. Kauahikaua, R. Lopaka Lee, S. Pekalib, Asta Miklius, Brian Shiro, Don Swanson, Patricia A. Nadeau, Michael H. Zoeller, Paul G. Okubo, Carolyn Parcheta, Matthew R. Patrick, William Tollett, Frank Trusdell, Edward F. Younger, Emily K. Montgomery-Brown, Kyle R. Anderson, Michael P. Poland, Jessica L. Ball, Joseph A. Bard, Michelle L. Coombs, Hannah R. Dietterich, Christoph Kern, Weston A. Thelen, Peter F. Cervelli, Tim R. Orr, Bruce F. Houghton, Cheryl Gansecki, Richard W. Hazlett, Paul Lundgren, Angie Diefenbach, Allan Lerner, Greg Waite, Peter J. Kelly, Laura Clor, Cynthia A. Werner, Katherine M. Mulliken, Gary B. Fisher, David Damby
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government