September 6, 2022 — Kīlauea Southwest Rift Zone Seismic Nodes Being Collected

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory staff and University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa collaborators walk on lava flows from 1823 along the Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park boundary fence as they hike to collect seismic nodes that have been deployed in Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone for the past two months. With permission from the National Park and landowners, the nodes were deployed as part of a project funded by the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Act of 2019 (H.R. 2157) in an effort to better understand the deep earthquake activity beneath the Pāhala region. On the far side of the fence, the "Great Crack" is visible; this feature parallels Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone and in 1823, lava erupted from the lower 6 miles (10 km) of the crack. You can learn more about the Great Crack and 1823 eruption in this "Volcano Watch" article: https://www.usgs.gov/news/volcano-watch-are-we-breaking-away-great-crack. USGS image by K. Mulliken.