Andreas Klügel studied the 1949 eruption on La Palma in detail as part of his doctoral thesis with Prof. Schmincke at GEOMAR (Kiel). After starting his work at the Department of Geosciences in Bremen, further DFG-funded investigations on the magma transport of past eruptions and the formation of phonolites on La Palma followed, as well as sampling and investigations of submarine rocks from the island flanks. An important goal of the investigations was to determine the depths of magma reservoirs and the pathways of rising magmas. The results of this research are relevant to the current volcanic eruption, and help geoscientists working in the field to interpret seismic signals and observed surface deformation.