News

VIDEO, PHOTOS: Fissure 8 Flow

Play
Listen to this Article
2 minutes
Loading Audio... Article will play after ad...
Playing in :00
A
A
A

Click here for video of the Fissure 8 flow by Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

Fissure 8, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

This footage and photos of the Fissure 8 flow were part of a Hawaii Army National Guard survey of the Kīlauea eruption.

The video begins at Fissure 8, which has developed a sizable cone around it and is sending channelized lava down to Kapoho Bay.

The lava river is at times well over 100 feet across and is moving quickly.

The U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo are working together on research of this eruption, using lava samples from the field.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW AD
ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW AD

“The first time anybody is trying to do this, to really look at the chemistry at the same time the volcano is erupting,” UH Hilo Volcanologist Cheryl Gansecki. “We can do a really quick chemical analysis, we can look for tracers that tell us if anything is changing in the magma, in the system, and get that information back to HVO right away, usually within hours, or at least a day.”

A new type of lava that is more fluid and can travel longer distances was identified through this chemical analysis.

ADVERTISEMENT

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW AD

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW AD

“The new lava also includes visible olivine crystals, though they are very small,” Gansecki said. “Some … are starting to look like the olivine crystals seen in the summit lava lake before it drained away, so at this point, we may be starting to see summit magma arriving in the system. So that is something we will be checking for. The lava compositions overall aren’t exactly the same as Puʻu ʻŌʻō or summit lava, but we don’t really expect them to be. They’re traveling 45 kilometers [28 miles] through the rift, where they’re going to cool, they’re going to mix with all the stuff in the stuff that is stored in rift zone and come out looking a little bit different in the end.”

Road closure, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

Road closure, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

Twenty tiny homes, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

Fissure 8 flow, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

Fissure 8 flow, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

Fissure 8 flow, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

Fissure 8 flow, June 16, 2018. PC: Hawai‘i National Guard, Tech. Sgt. Andrew Jackson.

RELATED LINKS: Community Comes Together to Build Tiny Homes for Puna Evacuees

Sponsored Content

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Stay in-the-know with daily or weekly
headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Cancel
×

Comments

This comments section is a public community forum for the purpose of free expression. Although Big Island Now encourages respectful communication only, some content may be considered offensive. Please view at your own discretion. View Comments