December 23, 2020—Kīlauea summit eruption thermal map constructed from

A helicopter overflight yesterday (Dec. 23, 2020) at approximately ~10:30 AM HST allowed for aerial visual and thermal imagery to be collected of the new eruption within Halema'uma'u crater at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano. This preliminary thermal map shows that the new lava lake is 715 m (780 yd) E-W axis and 460 m (500 yd) in N-S axis. The most recent estimate of lake area is about 25 hectares (69 acres). The scale of the thermal map ranges from blue to red, with blue colors indicative of cooler temperatures and red colors indicative of warmer temperatures. USGS map by M. Patrick.