COURTESY U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
A plume of white smoke rose over Kilauea Volcano’s inky black flow path as lava entered the ocean at Kamokuna on Friday.
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The lava shelf at the ocean entry point for Kilauea Volcano continued to grow last week, covering 3.2 acres by Saturday and extending 328 feet from the sea cliff, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said.
Typically, after a period of growth, these lava deltas break off and plunge into the ocean in spectacular fashion, most recently on May 3. Already, a crack has appeared inland of the sea cliff at Kamokuna, scientists said.
Otherwise, things remained pretty much normal for Kilauea, which has been erupting in one form or another since January 1983.
Eruptions continue at the summit and at the Puu Oo vent on the east rift zone, a flow that has been dubbed 61g. Surface flows are active above the pali but pose no imminent threat to nearby communities, scientists said.
The U.S. Geological Survey, which runs the volcano observatory, and Hawaii County Civil Defense warn that ocean entry spots are inherently dangerous, with unstable terrain and occasional flying debris from the interaction between the lava and the water. That interaction also creates a corrosive seawater plume containing hydrochloric acid and fine volcanic particles that can irritate the skin, eyes and lungs.
