Rise of the Halema‘uma‘u Lava Lake

The digital elevation models (DEMs) created from photos taken during helicopter overflights of the Kīlauea summit have many useful purposes. Using an elevation profile line across Halema‘uma‘u crater from each DEM allows HVO scientists to track the rise of the lava lake (bottom panel). In just the first 10 days of the eruption (Dec. 20–30, 2020), the lava lake rose to 80% of its current depth, and has slowed considerably since then. The lake rose more in the month of January, about 25 m (82 ft), than it has in the three months since (about 15 m or 50 ft). The lake is currently 227 m (745 ft) deep. The elevation profiles also show that the islands in the lake continue to rise with the lake surface. The top two panels show a pre-eruption DEM of Halema‘uma‘u crater from 2019 (left) and a DEM of the crater from April 16, 2021 (right). The red line in each top panel shows the elevation profile line used for the bottom panel. The profile line is one mile long. USGS figure.