Portable Realtime Volcano Infrasound Auditory Display Devices

Active open-vent volcanoes produce intense infrasound airwaves, and volcanoes with prominent craters can create strongly resonant signals, which are inaudible to humans, and often peak around 1 Hz. Study of volcano infrasound is used to model eruption dynamics, the structure of volcanic craters, and can be used as a component of volcano monitoring infrastructure. We have developed a portable on-site real-time sonification device that emits an audible sound in response to an infrasonic airwave. This device can be used near an active volcano both as a real-time educational aid and as an accessible tool for monitoring the state of volcano activity. This paper presents this device with its hardware and software implementation, its parameter mapping sonification algorithm, recommendations for its use in the field, and strategies for future improvements.