Small spatter bursts erupt from north vent ahead of Kīlauea Episode 51 lava fountaining
Next episode most likely to begin July 11 or 12; however, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports deflation began Saturday morning at the summit, and if that trend continues, fountaining could be pushed back.
7 hours ago
Kīlauea volcano is gearing up for yet another historic lava fountaining episode, with small precursory spatter bursts erupting from the north vent within Halema‘uma‘u Crater at the summit in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.
Strong glow also was observed overnight from the north vent, with variable glow from the south vent.
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports summit inflation indicates Episode 51 lava fountaining is likely between now and July 13. The forecast shows it will start most likely July 11 or 12.
However, there is a caveat.
Summit inflation continued to be recorded during the past day; however, the observatory reported just after 9 a.m. Saturday that the inflation rate flattened at about 4 a.m. before shifting to deflation during the past few hours.
If deflation is sustained, Episode 51 is more likely to begin Monday.
Several deflationary trends interrupted the overall inflationary pattern following Episode 50, and if the ongoing deflation continues, the Episode 51 forecast could be pushed back further.
Inflation recovery since the end of Episode 50 stands at about 15.3 microradians as of Saturday morning on the Uēkahuna tiltmeter, an increase of just 1.2 microradians since the morning of July 10.
Summit deflation totaled 15.3 microradians during Episode 50.
Nearly continuous spatter started at about midnight Saturday from the north vent, but became less vigorous after slow summit deflation began. Accumulation of spatter landing around the north vent rim built up a small cone around the vent.
Glow from the south vent was dim most of the night but punctuated by periods of bright glow after 3 a.m. Saturday. The bright glow correlated with spikes in tremor and appears to mark the onset of gas piston activity.
One of those periods produced visible spatter early Saturday morning.
Continuous, low-level seismic tremor transitioned to cyclic tremor bursts every 5 to 10 minutes at about 3 a.m. These spikes appear to mark drainback events associated with the gas piston cycles in the south vent.
Earthquake activity beneath Kaluapele, the Kīlauea caldera, remains low.
No significant activity has been noted along the volcano’s East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.
Kīlauea’s volcano alert level stands at advisory.
Click here to find additional eruption information, including a summary of lava fountaining since the beginning of the ongoing episodic summit eruption that began Dec. 23, 2024.
Significant changes in activity between daily Kīlauea updates are posted at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory website.
Remember: three Kīlauea summit livestream cameras are available to keep an eye on the volcano and watch eruptive activity from the comfort of home.
