Turbulent atmospheric plumes above line sources with an application to volcanic fissure eruptions on the terrestrial planets. The theory of turbulent plumes maintained above steady line sources of buoyancy is worked out in detail within the limitations of Taylor's entrainment assumption. It is applied to the structure of a pure plume injected into a stably stratified atmosphere. Volcanic basalt eruptions that develop from long, narrow vents create line source plumes, which rise well above the magmatic fire fountains playing near the ground level. The eruption of Laki in 1783 may provide an example of this style of eruption.
Flood basalts are more ancient examples.
Evidence of enormous fissure eruptions that occurred in the past on Mars and Venus also exists. It is very unlikely that the observed increase of sulfur dioxide above the Venusian cloud deck in 1978 could have been due to a line source volcanic eruption, even if it had been a flood basalt eruption. Return to the publications menu .