December 2, 2022 — Mauna Loa Radar Interferogram

This radar interferogram spans before the eruption (November 16, 2022) until December 2 at 6:13 a.m. HST. Colored fringes denote areas of ground deformation, with more fringes indicating more deformation.  Each color cycle represents 1.5 cm (0.6 in) of ground motion toward or away from the satellite (the sense of motion depends on the sense of color change).  The complex patterns indicate overall deflation of the summit area by a maximum of more than 50 cm (20 in) as magma has flowed out of the main magma reservoir beneath the caldera to feed the eruption.  There are also areas of uplift and spreading where magma reached the surface.  Those areas are through the main part of the caldera, just SW of the caldera, and NE of the caldera into the NE Rift Zone.  These data confirm that magma did not enter the SW Rift Zone and remained in the SW part of the summit region.  The deformation in the NE Rift Zone indicates more than 50 cm (20 in) of uplift and spreading, although the image cannot resolve the deformation that is closest to the eruptive fissures themselves, where the ground motion was probably greater.  The Saddle Road is of the image to the north.  Data are from the COSMO-SlyMed constellation of radar satellites, provided by the Italian Space Agency (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana) through the Hawaiʻi Supersite.