Earthquakes Continue South of Kīlauea Caldera

Earthquake activity continues south of the Kīlauea caldera. Kīlauea volcano is not erupting.

Over the past 24 hours, approximately 80 earthquakes were recorded at Kīlauea summit and south of Kīlauea caldera, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) reported. Most of the earthquakes were less than magnitude 2 and occurred approximately 0.6 to 2.5 miles below the surface.

These small earthquakes have occurred at up to seven detected earthquakes per hour. These earthquake rates are significantly lower than the rates observed earlier this week.

The East Rift Zone remains quiet.

Intrusive activity began on Aug. 23. The rate of ground deformation beneath the south part of Kīlauea summit region, within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, began increasing again on the evening of Aug. 26 and continues at this time.

“These observations suggest that magma is continuing to be supplied to the ongoing intrusion,” HVO stated.

Starting on the evening of Aug. 26, ground deformation in Kīlauea’s south summit region resumed at the higher rates seen in the first intrusive pulse spanning Aug. 23-25. In contrast, current earthquake activity remains low compared to the earlier pulses of this intrusive activity.

At the time of this statement, HVO reports that activity continues but there is no indication of upward migration of earthquakes toward the surface or change in deformation that would indicate shallowing of the source intrusive activity.

Accordingly, Kīlauea’s Volcano Alert Level and Aviation Color Code remain at ADVISORY/YELLOW.