Dec. 22, 2020 5:30 a.m. field update of Kīlauea's summit eruption

As of about 4:45 a.m. HST on Dec. 22, HVO field crew noted that the lava lake rose 3 meters in 3.5 hours. The lake surface is now 487 m (1598 ft) below the crater rim observation site, indicating that the lake has filled 134 m (440 ft) of the bottom of Halema‘uma‘u crater. This is more than double the depth of the water lake that was in the crater until the evening of Dec. 20 when it was vaporized. Fountaining continues at two locations, more vigorously at eastern vent, and both vents continue to feed the growing lava lake. USGS photo by B. Carr.