Characterizing Spatiotemporal Ground Deformation at Whakaari (White Island) Volcano, New Zealand From 2014 to 2024 Using InSAR Time-Series Analysis

Dynamic processes occurring inside a volcano like fluid movement;rising, storage, and extrusion of magma; eruptions; and slope movement can all cause rocks to either expand orcontract, producing a surface ground motion that can be detected by satellites. InSAR allows monitoring surface deformation at a mm‐to cm‐scale at regular time intervals from space. This study uses InSAR time‐series analysis to characterize deformation patterns in space and time at New Zealand's most active volcano, Whakaari, from 2014 to 2024, during which it has had four eruptions. The results show that the area east of the crater lake has gradually risen, whereas areas south and southwest of the crater lake have been subsiding. The amount of uplift observed before eruptions varies and is thought to be related to the nature of the process that causes the pressure build‐up in rocks (e.g., hydrothermal fluids or magma). The observed variations in the deformation correlate well with the activity reported at the volcano, indicating the usefulness of InSAR as a monitoring tool.