TEB effusion and partial rootless shield flank failure

Preview image for video: (December 1, 2007, 02:01:38 to 16:01:36)
On November 21, 2007—the eve of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday—Episode 58 changed dramatically. Lava, erupting from Fissure D into a perched lava channel, found an easier path to the surface and broke out from directly over Fissure D on what was, by then, the southern flank of the channel. This switch in the eruption led to the eventual demise of the Episode 58 perched lava channel in early 2008.

The "Thanksgiving Eve breakout" (TEB) lava flow spread to the south from Fissure D and quickly began to build a string of rootless shields. The rapid accumulation of lava to form shields did not allow flows to completely cool before being buried by subsequent flows. This resulted in the storage of molten or semi-molten lava within and on the flanks of the rootless shields. At times, this accumulated lava could not be contained and was released suddenly, producing rapidly moving ‘A‘ā flows, as can be seen in this movie. Lava, accumulating on the east flank of a rootless shield below the TEB vent, is suddenly released, carrying huge chunks of cooled and coherent lava as it moves to the left. The steep walls that had surrounded the ponded lava come into view as the lava drains toward the southeast.

The images that make up this movie were acquired by a time-lapse camera positioned on the west flank of Kupaianaha, about 300 meters away from the nearest flows.

Movie Details:
File size = 96.1 MB
Image interval = 2 minutes
Playback speed = 10 frames/sec
Movie duration = 00:00:42

Camera Coordinates (WGS84):
Lat: 19.4022º
Long: -155.0818º
View direction = ~226º