Thermal View Into the Halema'uma'u Vent

Views into the Halema'uma'u vent have been largely obscured by fume over the past several days, and the only consistent views have been with a thermal camera, which can "see" through the fume. This thermal image was taken at a nearly vertical angle from a helicopter, in order to see the bottom of the extremely deep and narrow vent cavity. Prior to the drop in lava level, the lava lake was near its high lava mark, shown by the hot ring on the upper vent cavity walls. The lava level dropped considerably over the past several days, retreating to a narrow opening deep within the vent cavity.