New USGS Data Release — Water-level data for the crater lake at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, Island of Hawaiʻi, 2019–2020
The USGS recently published "Water-level data for the crater lake at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, Island of Hawaiʻi, 2019–2020." The data release provides water level measurements and estimated lake surface area and volume during the lake's growth.
On July 25, 2019, approximately one year after the 2018 Kīlauea summit collapse sequence, a small pond of water was first observed in the deepest portion of the collapse pit, within Halemaʻumaʻu crater. The water level rose gradually over the next 17 months, and was measured on a routine basis with a laser rangefinder by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. The water level rose at rates of 5-15 cm day-1, achieving a maximum lake depth of approximately 50 m by December 2020. This water lake period ended abruptly on December 20, 2020, as a fissure eruption poured lava into the bottom of Halemaʻumaʻu, boiling off the lake over a span of 1.5 hours.
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