Self-limiting atmospheric lifetime of environmentally reactive elements in volcanic plumes

The 2018 eruption of Kīlauea, Hawai’i, produced exceptionally high discharge of metal pollutant elements, and an unprecedented opportunity to track them from vent to exposed communities over 200 km downwind. We discovered that magmatic volatility is an important control on the atmospheric behavior of elements, with [volatile elements] decreasing up to 100 times faster after emission than [refractory elements]. The differential deposition disproportionately impacts populated areas closest to the active vents, as the rapidlydeposited volatile elements generally have the highest environmental lability and potential toxicity.