June 16, 2025 — Tephra collection bucket damaged during episode 25 of Kīlauea's ongoing eruptionJune

Photo of a partially melted bucket with an embedded tephra clast erupted during episode 25 of the ongoing eruption at Kīlauea. Buckets are used to collect tephra, and emptied between episodes, to ensure that samples from each episode are isolated to track geochemical changes and determine the amount of tephra that fell at each site. During episode 25, hot to partially molten tephra landed in and on bucket, causing the observed damage. The bucket also had small (less than 5 mm or 0.2 of a inch) tephra clasts that were embedded into the bottom of the bucket. USGS photo by N. Deligne.