Kilauea Volcano’s ‘episode 18’ has come and gone
COURTESY U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
The view from the northwest rim of the Halemaumau crater and the summit caledera is seen in this screenshot image.
COURTESY U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
The view from the south rim of the Halemaumau crater and the summit caledera is seen in this screenshot image.
Scientists said “episode 18” of Kilauea volcano’s ongoing eruption began and ended Wednesday night, with a lava flow that lasted about an hour and 20 minutes.
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said lava began overflowing from the north vent at about 10:01 p.m. Wednesday after some precursory activity 50 minutes earlier.
This activity included spatter bursts every 10 to 20 seconds from the north vent and a strong glow from the south vent. This increased in size and frequency until about 9:30 p.m., leading to 10-to-15-foot-high dome fountains. At 9:45 p.m. a lava pond became visible.
Lava flows from the north vent overflowed and traveled several hundred feet onto the Halemaumau crater floor before the activity ended abruptly at about 11:21 p.m. Wednesday, but HVO says fountains may begin as late as Saturday or Sunday.
“The main lava fountaining phase of ‘episode 18’ is most likely to start sometime between today and this weekend, with the possibility of more lava flows preceding the fountaining phase,” said HVO scientists.
The current on-again, off-again eruption began Dec. 23 with each previous episode lasting for between 13 hours to 8.5 days, separated by pauses in eruptive activity lasting from less than 24 hours to 12 days, according to HVO.
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Flows have been confined to Halemaumau and the southwest side of Kaluapele within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.
No significant activity or changes have been noted along Kilauea’s East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.
The Kilauea volcano alert level remains at watch, and the aviation color code remains at orange.
Hazards from each eruption include vog, or volcanic smog, Pele’s hair, and tephra (rock fragments) that can affect the park and nearby communities.
Pele’s hair are thin, golden-brown strands of volcanic glass formed during eruptions when molten lava stretches and cools quickly, according to HVO, and the tiny fibers can be carried downwind of the crater, potentially causing skin and eye irritation.
Vog can still linger after each episode ends. During previous pauses, typical sulfur dioxide emissions have been at about 1,000 tons per day, officials said. This morning, the plume is being carried toward the south to southwest direction.
Vog information is available at vog.ivhhn.org Opens in a new tab.
