Hawai'i Volcano Blog

Temporary closures of Halemaʻumaʻu Trail and part of Byron Ledge Trail go into effect at 5 p.m. today (Oct. 7) because of continued inflation and increased seismicity at Kīlauea volcano summit; more than 200 shallow earthquakes were recorded during the past week, with 6 more during the past 24 hours.

On Sept. 30, as flames, spatter and lava flows erupted from the north and south vents at the summit of Kīlauea, magma was also making a new path below the surface of the caldera.

The exact time of the collapse is unknown and could have occurred when the park was temporarily closed during Tropical Storm Nolo.

The observatory based on the Big Island in Hawai‘i most of the year remotely keeps an eye on American Samoa, annual visits to the U.S. territory are essential for maintaining and strengthening partnerships on those islands and the territory’s volcano and earthquake monitoring network.

Stacey Kehaulani Torigoe — who was born and raised in Hilo and is a graduate of Waiākea High School — is director of invasive species and biosecurity programs for the 354,461-acre Big Island national park.

Because of the irregular changes in inflation and deflation, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports that forecast windows for its next eruptive episode can no longer be modeled.

Recently, re-inflation of the summit became more unsteady during the ongoing episodic eruption of Kīlauea volcano on the Big Island; now, following the opening of new vents Sept. 14-16 in Halemaʻumaʻu Crater, it appears the behavior of the volcano might have changed.

U.S. Geological Survey received more than 80 “Felt Reports” within first half-hour after the earthquake, which was widely felt around the Big Island; the farthest the quake was felt from its epicenter was in Kailua-Kona, about 49 miles away.

There is no active lava on the ground.

The summit region continues to be highly pressurized, but it is not possible to forecast what might happen next.

More than 56 “Felt Reports” were sent to the U.S. Geological Survey within the first half-hour following the quake; the farthest away coming from Honolulu, but it was mostly reported felt around the Big Island.

Next time you are waiting for a lava fountain to start at Kīlauea’s summit, consider checking out the views from the top of Maunaiki and the volcanic activity of the recent past that sculpted the landscape of the volcano’s Southwest Rift Zone.

Management of the park requires the use of aircraft for several reasons, including search-and-rescue missions and law enforcement operations as well as supporting management of natural and cultural resources, among others; Hawaiian Volcano Observatory also could need to conduct additional flights to assess volcanic activity and maintain instrumentation.

The past year in Hawai‘i has shown disasters such as hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and more can happen with little or no warning; steps you take to prepare for any emergency can help you be better prepared overall.

Most of Kīlauea is covered by lava flows younger than 1,000 years old because the volcano is so frequently active, meaning there are few samples, observations or data for older eruptions, especially at the summit; yet, we know Kīlauea has been in its shield-building stage for more than 200,000 years, so how do scientists learn about the volcano’s history?

The latest episode of continuous lava geysers within Halemaʻumaʻu Crater and confined inside Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park began at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday; additional details will be provided in the next official report from Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

Next time you listen to a scientist provide updates about ongoing volcanic activity, see a map showing locations of earthquakes or check the livestream cameras at Kīlauea summit for lava, take a moment to appreciate the team that works every day to keep the data flowing.

Entire park will be temporarily shuttered as of 5 p.m. today; could still be closed during next lava fountaining episode of ongoing episodic summit eruption at Kīlauea volcano.

Ocean swells are constantly beating on the ocean floor. This nonstop drumming creates continuous signals that travel through Earth and recorded on seismometers around the globe, including here in Hawai‘i; changes in the speed of these ocean noise signals can give us clues about volcanic activity.

With the storm’s general motion expected to continue, the core of Lala will pass the Big Island of Hawaiʻi on Saturday and then south of the smaller islands on Sunday.