Kīlauea summit overflight - May 13

A low, oblique aerial view of the west vent in Halema‘uma‘u at Kīlauea's summit (upper right) taken during an overflight on May 13. The area of active lava has slowly been decreasing in recent weeks, but not all of the lava lake surface has stagnated. Portions of the lake surface continue to resurface via a process called foundering. During foundering, the dense solidified crust on the surface of the lava lake sinks into the molten material below, resulting in parts of the lava lake being resurfaced. USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists observed this process occurring in multiple locations of the lake surface later in the day. USGS photo by K. Mulliken.