Hawai'i State News

Rare stellar blast discovery — made possible by spectral data captured by Keck Observatory at the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island — reveals a heavy-element core, challenging theories of how massive stars live and die.

Gov. Josh Green made the proclamation Aug. 7, National Purple Heart Day, and was presented a certificate on behalf of the Hawaiʻi Senate by Oʻahu state Sen. Mike Gabbard to commemorate the milestone.

Inclined lava fountains from north vent within Halemaʻumaʻu Crater inside the Big Island volcano’s caldera ejected molten rock 1,000 feet eastward toward the center of the crater for much of the 12.6 hours the latest eruptive episode.

Nearly $172 million was given during fiscal year 2025, by nearly 18,000 donors, that will fuel student scholarships, faculty and academic research and more throughout the university’s statewide 10-campus system.

With the 30th episode, came one of the most significant changes since the eruption started—a new fissure in the caldera wall.

The military is working to renew its lease at Pōhakuloa Training Area on the Big Island, but the state Board of Land and Natural Resources voted in May not to accept the final environmental impact statement.

Both Polynesian Voyaging Society traditional double-hulled voyaging canoes were welcomed by the Rarotonga community with a traditional ceremony, following a 2-day trek from Bora Bora, French Polynesia under nearly perfect weather conditions.

Participation in this year’s statewide Hawaiʻi State Public Library System’s Summer Reading Challenge surged 44%.

U.S. senator from Hawai‘i is one of 10 senators who signed a letter putting pressure on CEO Mark Zuckerberg, alarmed by his tech company’s practices related to the artificial intelligence bots, ‘which pose astonishing risks for children.’

Firm sponsors three neighbor island squads, Including the D.P.D. (Dynamic Playmaker Development) team on Hawai‘i Island.

Rarotonga, Cook Islands, will be the final destination for the Moananuiākea Voyage, leg 14 crew, which began in Tautira, Tahiti, more than two weeks ago.

The purpose of the meetings is to seek community input for expanding early childhood education and upgrading high school graduation criteria. Today, the Board will host a meeting at Kāʻu High and Pahala Elementary.

About $6.7 million is expected to be available for awards through the Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources program aimed at protecting and preserving land with natural, environmental, recreational, scenic, cultural, agricultural production or historic value.

Hilo campus partners with National Science Foundation, NVIDIA in $152M project — and will receive $1.4M in grant funding from that total — to be a top collaborator on cutting-edge, transformative artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Agency within Hawaiʻi Department of Accounting and General Services continues its work to digitize about 90,000 maps, some that go back to 1871, so people can find them online for practical needs and to satisfy their curiosity.

The university’s statewide system of 7 community colleges was recently ranked 11th in the nation in a 2025 Wallethub analysis, which evaluated 653 colleges nationwide on 18 metrics, including tuition, graduation and transfer rates and post-graduation earnings.

Nearly 300 kūpuna from Hawai‘i Island, Molokaʻi and Japan will perform during the event Sept. 10-11 at OUTRIGGER Kona Resort & Spa in Keauhou on the west side of the Big Island.

“We need everyone’s help at every step,” said John Komeiji, board chair of the Mauna Kea Stewardship and Oversight Authority “We are searching for answers because we do not have them all.”

“This is more than an equipment upgrade — it’s an investment that enhances our harbor’s operational capabilities and strengthens our disaster preparedness. The new lift will allow us to launch our vessel quickly and safely to protect our shores and support our community.” — Big Island state Sen. Lorraine R. Inouye, who represents Hawai’i Senate District 1,

The happiness and celebration of their arrival at small South Pacific island — their final port of call in French Polynesia before heading to the Cook Islands — was almost an inverse of the emotional farewell Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia received as they departed Aug. 7 from Tautira, Tahiti.