Volcano Alarms: Keeping HVO Virtually Vigilant 24/8

This thermal image of the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō crater, sent by text on May 7, 2015, to USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists, is an example of the thermal camera alarm system developed at HVO. In this case, the alarm was triggered by the appearance of new lava on the floor of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, seen here as the brightly colored (hot) region in the image. The temperature scale at right is in degrees Celsius. USGS webcam image.