#Eruption

Kīlauea volcano’s Episode 7 of eruptive activity ends abrubtly 16 hours after it began, but inflation at the summit is already on the rise again, so it might not be long until an Episode 8 is underway.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said based on the durations of Episodes 5 and 6, and the short pauses that separated them, this episode of eruptive activity in the Big Island volcano’s caldera will likely last 10 to 20 hours.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory says another eruptive event could start within the next 1 to 2 days if the inflation rate at the Big Island volcano’s summit stays similar to that during Episode 5. The tiltmeter at Uēkahuna bluff started recording the start of inflationary tilt at 1 p.m. Jan. 25.

Episode 6 of the Big Island volcano’s latest eruption, which began the week of Christmas 2024, is underway as lava flows onto the crater floor from a geiser that started at about 11:28 p.m. Jan. 24.

Wondering about that dusting of glittery threads on your property? Pele’s hair is the name for the strands of volcanic glass that are created when globs of liquid lava are stretched apart during an eruption.

After less than a day of eruptive activity, Episode V of the Big Island volcano’s ongoing summit eruption — the shortest so far — ended early Thursday morning. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists say a sixth episode coudl start sometime during the next few days if inflationary trends continue.

When magma cools prior to eruption, crystals grow and develop chemical zones that record changes in the environment around them. Scientists study chemical differences in these zones, which can provide information about the magma, including its temperature, composition and more.

This spattering follows an eruptive event at Kīlauea volcano that began on Dec. 23 but paused on the evening of Jan. 3.

Assuming the vent in the southwest portion of Halemaʻumaʻu Crater remains open, indicated by continued glow and degassing, and inflation rate remains constant, a new eruptive episode could potentially begin sometime by Jan. 13, when ground tilt at Uēkahuna is expected to reach 12 microradians, about double prior post-fountain tilt increases.

People around the world greet the New Year with fireworks and other celebrations. Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park visitors got to greet 2025 with displays of lava fountaining from the southwest part of Kaluapele, the summit caldera of Kīlauea volcano.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports that lava fountaining and flow activity within Halemaʻumaʻu Crater ceased at about 8:40 p.m. Friday. Lava continues to slowly move, with crustal overturns expected in the hours following the pause in eruptive activity.

As of this morning, U.S. Geological Survey’s livestream video of the eruption continued to show fountaining.

There are eyes watching and waiting for those awe-inspiring moments with more nefarious reasons in mind. “Thieves are looking for the right moment to steal your stuff,” said Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park in a recent Facebook post.

Current fountaining is occurring bursts up to 30-45 feet high from the two most northern vents.

This is the Big Island volcano’s third eruption this year, and all three happened in different parts of the mountain — the Southwest Rift Zone, East Rift Zone and now the summit caldera. The last time eruptions happened in all of these areas in the same year was 50 years ago!

“Inflation of the summit following the shutdown indicates that a resumption in activity is possible in the coming days, but not certain,” said Hawaiian Volcano Observatory in its daily Kīlauea update just after 9:30 a.m. today.

Early this morning, Hawaiian Airlines delayed seven interisland departures and canceled two flights while they waited for weather reports from Kilauea’s eruption.

The Big Island is “such a dynamic environment that I think we take for granted because most places on Earth don’t have those dramatic changes,” said Steve Lundblad, geology professor at UH-Hilo.

Borehole tiltmeters have been used by the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) since the early 1970s and have since become an essential part of HVO’s volcano monitoring program.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports “all observable and instrumental signs of potential for renewed eruptive activity have declined”; only a couple of intermittent small spots of residual glow could be detected on the flow field Sunday night and weak degassing continues.