August 18, 2025 – The southwest side of Halemaʻumaʻu crater and the growing tephra deposit.

This photo was taken on August 18, looking southeast toward the large tephra deposit that has accumulated since the episodic eruptions at Halemaʻumaʻu crater at Kīlauea volcano began in late December of 2024. The tephra deposit is now about 75 feet (about 23 meters) thick. In the photo, you can see a small bright dot against the dark tephra pile, this is a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist who is about six-feet tall (1.8 meters) for reference.