Halema‘uma‘u lava lake, Kīlauea summit eruption—May 13, 2021

The area of solidified crust at the surface of Halema‘uma‘u's lava lake, at the summit of Kīlauea, has been growing over the past several weeks. This may make it seem that the eruption is over but lava continues to be supplied to the lava lake from below. With National Park Service permission, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists observe this eruption from within the closed area of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. On May 13, geologists observed three small areas of active lava ponding on the surface, visible in this photo. The continuous laser rangefinder at the summit of Kīlauea measures an area in the upper right portion of this photo. USGS image by K. Mulliken.