Matthew Loewen
I work as a geologist at the Alaska Volcano Observatory with a background in igneous petrology. I specialize in in-situ geochemistry and tephra textural studies, which I use to understand volcanic eruption style, eruption history, and the origin and evolution of magmas.
Professional Experience
Research Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey—Alaska Volcano Observatory, 2017–present
Instructor, Oregon State University, January 2017–March 2017
Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Oregon, March 2014–June 2016
Graduate Research and Teaching Assistant, Oregon State University, 2008–2013
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. in Geology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, March 2014
M.S. in Geology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, September 2011
B.S. in Geology, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA, May 2008
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 19
Syn-eruptive hydration of volcanic ash records pyroclast-water interaction in explosive eruptions
Magma-water interaction can dramatically influence the explosivity of volcanic eruptions. However, syn- and post-eruptive diffusion of external (non-magmatic) water into volcanic glass remains poorly constrained and may bias interpretation of water in juvenile products. Hydrogen isotopes in ash from the 2009 eruption of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska, record syn-eruptive hydration by vaporized...
Authors
Michael R. Hudak, Ilya N. Bindeman, Matthew Warren Loewen, Thomas Giachetti
Evolution in eruptive style of the 2018 eruption of Veniaminof volcano, Alaska, reflected in groundmass textures and remote sensing
Variable eruptive style and explosivity is common in basaltic to basaltic andesite volcanoes but can have uncertain origins. Veniaminof volcano in the Alaska-Aleutian arc is a frequently active open-vent center, regularly producing Strombolian eruptions and small lava flows from an intracaldera cone within an intracaldera ice cap. The September–December 2018 eruption of Veniaminof...
Authors
Matthew Warren Loewen, Hannah R. Dietterich, Nathan Graham, Pavel Izbekof
Constraints on eruption processes and event masses for the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof volcano, Alaska, through evaluation of IASI satellite SO2 masses and complementary datasets
Bogoslof volcano, Alaska, experienced at least 70 explosive eruptions between 12 December 2016 and 31 August 2017. Due to its remote location and limited local monitoring network, this eruption was monitored and characterized primarily using remote geophysical and satellite techniques. SO2 emissions from Bogoslof were persistently detected by the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding...
Authors
Taryn M. Lopez, Lieven Clarisse, Hans F. Schwaiger, Alexa R. Van Eaton, Matthew Warren Loewen, David Fee, John J. Lyons, Kristi L. Wallace, Cheryl Searcy, Aaron G. Wech, Matthew M. Haney, David J. Schneider, Nathan Graham
Petrology of the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof Island
The 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof primarily produced crystal-rich amphibole basalts. The dominant juvenile tephra were highly microlitic with diktytaxitic vesicles, and amphiboles had large reaction rims. Both observations support a magma history of slow ascent and/or shallow stalling prior to eruption. Plagioclase-amphibole-clinopyroxene mineralogy are also suggestive of shallow magma...
Authors
Matthew Warren Loewen, Pavel Izbekof, Jamshid Moshrefzadeh, Michelle L. Coombs, Jessica Larsen, Nathan Graham, Michelle Harbin, Christopher F. Waythomas, Kristi L. Wallace
Isotopic and petrologic investigation, and a thermomechanical model of genesis of large-volume rhyolites in arc environments: Karymshina Volcanic Complex, Kamchatka, Russia
The Kamchatka Peninsula of eastern Russia is currently one of the most volcanically active areas on Earth where a combination of >8 cm/yr subduction convergence rate and thick continental crust generates large silicic magma chambers, reflected by abundant large calderas and caldera complexes. This study examines the largest center of silicic 4-0.5 Ma Karymshina Volcanic Complex, which...
Authors
Ilya N. Bindeman, Vladimir L. Leonov, Dylan P. Colòn, Aleksey N. Rogozin, Niccole Shipley, Brian R. Jicha, Matthew Warren Loewen, Taras V. Gerya
Unravelling the complexity of magma plumbing at Mount St. Helens: A new trace element partitioning scheme for amphibole
Volcanoes at subduction zones reside above complex magma plumbing systems, where individual magmatic components may originate and interact at a range of pressures. Because whole-rock compositions of subduction zone magmas are the integrated result of processes operating throughout the entire plumbing system, processes such as mixing, homogenisation and magma assembly during shallow...
Authors
Madeleine C.S. Humphreys, George F. Cooper, Jing Zhang, Matthew Warren Loewen, Adam J.R. Kent, Colin G. Macpherson, Jon P. Davidson
Non-USGS Publications**
Loewen, M. W., Bindeman, I. N., & Melnik, O. E. (2017). Eruption mechanisms and short duration of large rhyolitic lava flows of Yellowstone. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 458, 80–91. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2016.10.034
Ustunisik, G., Loewen, M. W., Nielsen, R. L., & Tepley, F. J., III. (2016). Interpretation of the provenance of small-scale heterogeneity as documented in a single eruptive unit from Mt. Jefferson, Central Oregon Cascades. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 17, 1–19. http://doi.org/10.1002/2016GC006297
Tuohy, R. M., Wallace, P. J., Loewen, M. W., Swanson, D. A., & Kent, A. J. (2016). Magma transport and olivine crystallization depths in Kīlauea's east rift zone inferred from experimentally rehomogenized melt inclusions. Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta, 185(C), 232–250. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2016.04.020
Loewen, M. W., & Bindeman, I. N. (2016). Oxygen isotope thermometry reveals high magmatic temperatures and short residence times in Yellowstone and other hot-dry rhyolites compared to cold-wet systems. American Mineralogist, 101, 1222–1227. http://doi.org/10.2138/am-2016-5591
Drew, D. L., Bindeman, I. N., Loewen, M. W., & Wallace, P. J. (2016). Initiation of large‐volume silicic centers in the Yellowstone hotspot track: insights from H2O- and F-rich quartz-hosted rhyolitic melt inclusions in the Arbon Valley Tuff of the Snake River Plain. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 171, 10. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00410-015-1210-z
Loewen, M. W., & Bindeman, I. N. (2015). Oxygen isotope and trace element evidence for three‐stage petrogenesis of the youngest episode (260–79 ka) of Yellowstone rhyolitic volcanism. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 170(4), 1–39. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00410-015-1189-5
Burns, D. H., de Silva, S. L., Tepley, F. J., III, Schmitt, A. K., & Loewen, M. W. (2015). Recording the transition from flare-up to steady-state arc magmatism at the Purico–Chascon volcanic complex, northern Chile. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 422(C), 75–86. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.04.002
Loewen, M. W., Duncan, R. A., Kent, A. J., & Krawl, K. (2013). Prolonged plume volcanism in the Caribbean Large Igneous Province: New insights from Curaçao and Haiti. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 14(10), 4241–4259. http://doi.org/10.1002/ggge.20273
Loewen, M. W., & Kent, A. J. (2012). Sources of elemental fractionation and uncertainty during the analysis of semi-volatile metals in silicate glasses using LA-ICP-MS. Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry, 27(9), 1502–1508. http://doi.org/10.1039/c2ja30075c
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 19
Syn-eruptive hydration of volcanic ash records pyroclast-water interaction in explosive eruptions
Magma-water interaction can dramatically influence the explosivity of volcanic eruptions. However, syn- and post-eruptive diffusion of external (non-magmatic) water into volcanic glass remains poorly constrained and may bias interpretation of water in juvenile products. Hydrogen isotopes in ash from the 2009 eruption of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska, record syn-eruptive hydration by vaporized...
Authors
Michael R. Hudak, Ilya N. Bindeman, Matthew Warren Loewen, Thomas Giachetti
Evolution in eruptive style of the 2018 eruption of Veniaminof volcano, Alaska, reflected in groundmass textures and remote sensing
Variable eruptive style and explosivity is common in basaltic to basaltic andesite volcanoes but can have uncertain origins. Veniaminof volcano in the Alaska-Aleutian arc is a frequently active open-vent center, regularly producing Strombolian eruptions and small lava flows from an intracaldera cone within an intracaldera ice cap. The September–December 2018 eruption of Veniaminof...
Authors
Matthew Warren Loewen, Hannah R. Dietterich, Nathan Graham, Pavel Izbekof
Constraints on eruption processes and event masses for the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof volcano, Alaska, through evaluation of IASI satellite SO2 masses and complementary datasets
Bogoslof volcano, Alaska, experienced at least 70 explosive eruptions between 12 December 2016 and 31 August 2017. Due to its remote location and limited local monitoring network, this eruption was monitored and characterized primarily using remote geophysical and satellite techniques. SO2 emissions from Bogoslof were persistently detected by the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding...
Authors
Taryn M. Lopez, Lieven Clarisse, Hans F. Schwaiger, Alexa R. Van Eaton, Matthew Warren Loewen, David Fee, John J. Lyons, Kristi L. Wallace, Cheryl Searcy, Aaron G. Wech, Matthew M. Haney, David J. Schneider, Nathan Graham
Petrology of the 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof Island
The 2016–2017 eruption of Bogoslof primarily produced crystal-rich amphibole basalts. The dominant juvenile tephra were highly microlitic with diktytaxitic vesicles, and amphiboles had large reaction rims. Both observations support a magma history of slow ascent and/or shallow stalling prior to eruption. Plagioclase-amphibole-clinopyroxene mineralogy are also suggestive of shallow magma...
Authors
Matthew Warren Loewen, Pavel Izbekof, Jamshid Moshrefzadeh, Michelle L. Coombs, Jessica Larsen, Nathan Graham, Michelle Harbin, Christopher F. Waythomas, Kristi L. Wallace
Isotopic and petrologic investigation, and a thermomechanical model of genesis of large-volume rhyolites in arc environments: Karymshina Volcanic Complex, Kamchatka, Russia
The Kamchatka Peninsula of eastern Russia is currently one of the most volcanically active areas on Earth where a combination of >8 cm/yr subduction convergence rate and thick continental crust generates large silicic magma chambers, reflected by abundant large calderas and caldera complexes. This study examines the largest center of silicic 4-0.5 Ma Karymshina Volcanic Complex, which...
Authors
Ilya N. Bindeman, Vladimir L. Leonov, Dylan P. Colòn, Aleksey N. Rogozin, Niccole Shipley, Brian R. Jicha, Matthew Warren Loewen, Taras V. Gerya
Unravelling the complexity of magma plumbing at Mount St. Helens: A new trace element partitioning scheme for amphibole
Volcanoes at subduction zones reside above complex magma plumbing systems, where individual magmatic components may originate and interact at a range of pressures. Because whole-rock compositions of subduction zone magmas are the integrated result of processes operating throughout the entire plumbing system, processes such as mixing, homogenisation and magma assembly during shallow...
Authors
Madeleine C.S. Humphreys, George F. Cooper, Jing Zhang, Matthew Warren Loewen, Adam J.R. Kent, Colin G. Macpherson, Jon P. Davidson
Non-USGS Publications**
Loewen, M. W., Bindeman, I. N., & Melnik, O. E. (2017). Eruption mechanisms and short duration of large rhyolitic lava flows of Yellowstone. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 458, 80–91. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2016.10.034
Ustunisik, G., Loewen, M. W., Nielsen, R. L., & Tepley, F. J., III. (2016). Interpretation of the provenance of small-scale heterogeneity as documented in a single eruptive unit from Mt. Jefferson, Central Oregon Cascades. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 17, 1–19. http://doi.org/10.1002/2016GC006297
Tuohy, R. M., Wallace, P. J., Loewen, M. W., Swanson, D. A., & Kent, A. J. (2016). Magma transport and olivine crystallization depths in Kīlauea's east rift zone inferred from experimentally rehomogenized melt inclusions. Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta, 185(C), 232–250. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2016.04.020
Loewen, M. W., & Bindeman, I. N. (2016). Oxygen isotope thermometry reveals high magmatic temperatures and short residence times in Yellowstone and other hot-dry rhyolites compared to cold-wet systems. American Mineralogist, 101, 1222–1227. http://doi.org/10.2138/am-2016-5591
Drew, D. L., Bindeman, I. N., Loewen, M. W., & Wallace, P. J. (2016). Initiation of large‐volume silicic centers in the Yellowstone hotspot track: insights from H2O- and F-rich quartz-hosted rhyolitic melt inclusions in the Arbon Valley Tuff of the Snake River Plain. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 171, 10. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00410-015-1210-z
Loewen, M. W., & Bindeman, I. N. (2015). Oxygen isotope and trace element evidence for three‐stage petrogenesis of the youngest episode (260–79 ka) of Yellowstone rhyolitic volcanism. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 170(4), 1–39. http://doi.org/10.1007/s00410-015-1189-5
Burns, D. H., de Silva, S. L., Tepley, F. J., III, Schmitt, A. K., & Loewen, M. W. (2015). Recording the transition from flare-up to steady-state arc magmatism at the Purico–Chascon volcanic complex, northern Chile. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 422(C), 75–86. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2015.04.002
Loewen, M. W., Duncan, R. A., Kent, A. J., & Krawl, K. (2013). Prolonged plume volcanism in the Caribbean Large Igneous Province: New insights from Curaçao and Haiti. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 14(10), 4241–4259. http://doi.org/10.1002/ggge.20273
Loewen, M. W., & Kent, A. J. (2012). Sources of elemental fractionation and uncertainty during the analysis of semi-volatile metals in silicate glasses using LA-ICP-MS. Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry, 27(9), 1502–1508. http://doi.org/10.1039/c2ja30075c
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.