No Significant Changes in Kīlauea Volcano

Kīlauea Volcano is not erupting and its USGS Volcano Alert level remains at normal. Updates for Kīlauea are now issued monthly.

Kīlauea monitoring data showed no significant changes in activity over the past month. Seismicity was relatively consistent with some episodic increased rates at the summit coincident with inflation. Sulfur dioxide emission rates are low at the summit and below detection limits at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō and the lower East Rift Zone (LERZ). The water lake at the bottom of Halema‘uma‘u continues to slowly expand and deepen.

Mauna Loa is not erupting. Its USGS Volcano Alert level remains at “advisory.” This alert level does not mean that an eruption is imminent or that progression to an eruption is certain.

This past week, about 70 small-magnitude earthquakes (all less than M2.0) were detected beneath the upper elevations of Mauna Loa. Deformation measurements show continued summit inflation. Fumarole temperature and gas concentrations on the Southwest Rift Zone remain stable.

Mauna Loa updates are issued weekly.

Two earthquakes with three or more felt reports occurred on Hawaiʻi Island this past week: a magnitude-3.3 quake 53 km (33 mi) northeast of Hawaiian Beaches at 34 km (21 mi) depth on Dec. 2 at 6:07 p.m. HST, and a magnitude-3.4 quake 10 km (6 mi) north of Pāhala at 12 km (7 mi) depth on Nov. 30 at 8:47 p.m. HST.

HVO continues to closely monitor both Kīlauea and Mauna Loa for any signs of increased activity.

Visit HVO’s website (https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hvo) for past Volcano Watch articles, Kīlauea and Mauna Loa updates, volcano photos, maps, recent earthquake info, and more. Email questions to [email protected].

Volcano Watch (https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo/hvo_volcano_watch.html) is a weekly article and activity update written by U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists and affiliates.