Kilauea’s ‘episode 18’ pauses after over 10 hours of lava fountains
COURTESY U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
A west view of Halemaumau crater at the summit of Kilauea from the camera positioned on the south rim.
COURTESY U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
A screenshot of the live stream from Kilauea Volcano’s east Halemaumau crater webcam this morning. The south vent’s fountain reached over 650 feet today.
UPDATE 2:45 p.m.
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists said “episode 18” of the ongoing Kilaua volcano eruption ended abruptly at 1:28 p.m. today.
“The north and south vents stopped erupting at approximately the same time,” said HVO in a 2:20 p.m. status report. “The fountaining phase of episode 18 began at 3:20 a.m. this morning and lasted for 10 hours and 8 minutes.”
Lava erupted from both vents, scientists said, with fountains from the south vent reaching over 600 feet high. Fountains from the north vent, meanwhile, remained below 200 feet high.
“Approximately 5 million cubic meters were erupted at about 140 cubic meters per second,” said HVO. “Lava flows from both vents covered over 60% of the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu within the southern part of Kaluapele (Kilauea caldera).”
The Kilauea volcano alert level remains at watch, while the aviation color code remains at orange.
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EARLIER TODAY
Lava fountains soared as high as 650 feet early today as “episode 18” of Kilauea volcano’s summit eruption resumed after a two-day pause, according to the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
Fountains began overflowing the south vent in Halemaumau crater around 3:20 a.m., followed by a north vent overflow less than 30 minutes later. By 3:47 a.m., both vents were feeding a vigorous lava flow that had covered over 20% of the crater floor by sunrise.
The south vent’s fountain reached over 650 feet, while the north vent’s fountain rose above 160 feet.
The eruption, which began Dec. 23 within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, is confined to the summit caldera. No activity has been reported in the East or Southwest Rift Zones.
High levels of sulfur dioxide gas continue to pose a hazard, along with volcanic glass fragments known as Pele’s hair that may drift across the park and into nearby communities, depending on wind conditions.
Today’s fountaining followed a period of increased spattering that began at about 1:30 a.m., according to HVO. Tremor levels rose sharply with the eruption onset.
