Corona lava tube – Lanzarote

The Corona lava tube in the island of Lanzarote (Canary Islands, Spain) is one of the largest volcanic complexes in the world. Its formation is the result of the eruptive activity dating back to about 5,000 years ago of the volcano Monte Corona, which gave rise to the formation of a volcanic tunnel over 8km long that extends from the Corona volcano to the ocean waters.

Through three surveys campaigns carried out between February and November 2017, we realized the three-dimensional survey with laser scanners of all the accessible parts of this impressive lava tube. The project, funded by the Cabildo de Lanzarote and the University of Padua, has three main objectives:

1) create a virtual and analog model of the cave to be used for educational purposes in the tourist center of Casa de Los Volcanes of the Lanzarote Geopark to give visitors the chance to admire the non-tourist and most inaccessible parts of this lava tube;

2) provide a detailed map of the Corona lava tube system and its depth from the surface, identifying the critical areas for potential collapses in order to allow local institutions to develop a protection plan for this underground environment;

3) to provide researchers and scientists with quantitative morphometric data (volumes, morphologies, surface roughness, etc.) to develop detailed studies on the genesis of the tube and peculiar morphologies. These latest studies are underway and will allow for the first time a detailed comparison between this exceptional example of terrestrial lava tube in relation to similar areas observed on the Moon and on Mars.