July 28, 2026 — North vent lava fountain during episode 52 at Kīlauea summit

Another view of the north vent lava fountain during episode 52 at the summit of Kīlauea on July 28, 2026. Precursory activity began from the north vent on the morning of July 28 with 6 overflows between 10:22 a.m. and 1:53 p.m. HST, the longest lasting over 30 minutes. These were immediately followed by the onset of a vigorous overflow fed by 10-30 foot (3-10 meter) high dome fountains from the north vent at 1:56 p.m. HST which continued until the onset of episode 52 fountaining at 7:10 p.m. HST. The transition was marked by increasing height of the dome fountain, greater eruptive volume, increased deflation and rapidly increasing tremor. The eruptive episode continued for almost 7.5 hours, ending at 2:36 a.m. HST on July 29, 2026. USGS photo by K. Mulliken.