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This photo shows the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and the Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park Service Jaggar Museum buildings on the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, overlooking the summit caldera. Mauna Loa volcano looms in the background.
This view shows Kīlauea's summit lava from the south, with the east slope of Mauna Loa in the background and Mauna Kea in the distance. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and the Hawai‘i National Park Service Jaggar Museum buildings are visible on the rim of Kīlauea's summit caldera, behind Halema‘uma‘u. The dark lava flow on the floor of Halema‘uma‘u was mostly erupted during April-May 2015.
This photo looks south toward the lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u. The April-May 2015 lava flow is not as obvious from this perspective, but the small overflows from October 2016 stand out a bit better. They are visible as shiny pads of lava at the upper left and lower right sides of the lake.
The lava lake was spattering in two places along its southeast edge at the time this photo was taken. Lava wells up into the lake nears its northern edge, which is out of sight to the left, and generally flows to the south where it sinks back down along the margin of the lake. The lake surface crusts over quickly as it cools, forming dark, flexible crustal plates separated by spreading zones that reveal molten lava.
There has been little change at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō over the past several months. This photo, looking northeast, shows Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's current crater, at the center of the image with its outgassing vents, and a smaller pit at lower left hosting a small lava pond. The high point of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is atop the cliff near the left edge of the photo.
This photo looks out onto the floor of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō from near the high point on the northwest rim of the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō cone. The west edge of the main crater is to the left and the pit with the lava pond is filled with fume just right of center. To better appreciate the size of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, notice the two HVO geologists in orange at the center of the image walking to the West pit to make observations of the lava pond.
Lava continues to flow into the ocean near the location historically known as Kamokuna. This image, taken from near the top of the Pūlama pali, shows the white plume at the ocean entry. The white plume is formed by the interaction of lava and seawater is a corrosive mixture of super-heated steam, hydrochloric acid, and tiny particles of volcanic glass
The Pūlama pali is one of several steep fault scarps that cut the south flank of the Island of Hawai‘i. This image shows the steepest part of the Pūlama pali as viewed from the coastal plain. The fume on the face of the pali marks the trace of the active lava tube carrying lava to the ocean, which is behind the photographer. An HVO geologist, in orange, walks across the flow in the foreground.
Lava entering the ocean at Kamokuna has formed a shelf-like delta that extends seaward along the older sea cliff. The active delta is now just over 16 acres in size. The FEMA emergency access road through Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park ends where it was cut by the episode 61g lava flow. The road continues on the other side where it is visible as a faint diagonal line at upper right. The view is to the west.
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