Images

An HVO scientist (center) observes 20-m- (65-ft-) high lava fountains erupted from Mauna Loa on March 25, 1984. The 30th anniversary of this eruption will be the topic of an "After Dark in the Park" program presented by HVO geologist Frank Trusdell on March 25, 2014.

Every inch of the deck of the R/V Connecticut is covered by instrumented platforms awaiting deployment on the seafloor south of Fire Island NY in winter 2014.

  Every inch of the deck of the R/V Connecticut is covered by instrumented platforms awaiting deployment on the seafloor south of Fire Island NY in winter 2014. 

This image was acquired by the Earth Observing 1 satellite's Advanced Land Imager sensor on February 2, and shows Kīlauea's summit and east rift zone. Although this is a false-color image, the color map has been chosen to mimic what the human eye would expect to see.

A view of the summit lava lake at dusk. The lava lake is contained within a crater informally called the "Overlook" crater (due to its position immediately below the former Halema‘uma‘u visitor overlook), and this crater is set within the larger Halema‘uma‘u Crater. The photo was taken from the rim of Halema‘uma‘u Crater.

Shaded relief map of Kīlauea's East Rift Zone in the vicinity of the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō eruption site. Colors show changes in elevation that occurred due to emplacement of a lava flow at the base of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō during August 3-15, 2011. Parts of this flow were over 20 m (60 ft) thick.

Preview image for video: This Quicktime video shows a time-lapse sequence spanning from dawn to dusk on Tuesday, January 28, using images collected by our webcam near the summit of Mauna Loa Volcano (13,680 ft above sea level).

Preview image for video: This Quicktime video shows a time-lapse sequence spanning from dawn to dusk on Tuesday, January 28, using images collected by our webcam near the summit of Mauna Loa Volcano (13,680 ft above sea level).

This thermal image shows the lava pond on the east rim of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō from above. The temperature scale is in degrees Celsius. The pond is nearly circular, and has surface crust temperatures between 300 and 400 C (570-750 Fahrenheit - orange colors).

The lava pond at the northeast cone had several spatter sources active on the pond margin, throwing spatter to a height of a few meters (yards).

Closer view of the northeast spatter cone on the east rim of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. Deflation last week resulted in the top of this small cone to collapse, and with resumed inflation a lava pond has filled the new pit. The northeast spatter cone is also the vent area for the Kahauale‘a 2 lava flow, and the path of the lava tube is marked by the two incandescent skylights.

A clear view of the lava pond at the northeast cone, on the east rim of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. View is towards the northeast. Several small spatter sources are active on the pond margin.

Several other spatter cones were active in Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō crater today, producing loud jetting and hissing sounds as gas is forced through narrow incandescent openings.

Preview image for video: shows a lava pond, about 15 m (50 ft) in diameter, on the east rim of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. Several small spatter sources are active on the pond margin, and release gas from within the pond. Lava pond activity like this is common in Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō.

Preview image for video: shows a lava pond, about 15 m (50 ft) in diameter, on the east rim of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. Several small spatter sources are active on the pond margin, and release gas from within the pond. Lava pond activity like this is common in Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō.

View of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō crater, looking northeast. In the upper left, a line of fume sources marks the path of the lava tube feeding the Kahauale‘a 2 flow.

The summit lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u Crater dropped slightly last week in response to summit deflation, but has returned to higher levels with resumed inflation. Fluctuations like this have been common during the summit eruption. The lake is currently at a level that has been typical for the past year.

The lava pond at the northeast cone had several spatter sources active on the pond margin, throwing spatter to a height of a few meters (yards).

This thermal image shows the front of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow. Summit deflation a week ago caused a reduction in lava supply to the flow and the flow front stalled, and is now inactive. Over the past few days, resumed summit inflation has driven new breakouts (shown by white and yellow colors) on the flow that are behind the stalled flow front.

Several other spatter cones were active in Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō crater today, producing loud jetting and hissing sounds as gas is forced through narrow incandescent openings.

The Kahauale‘a 2 flow has been advancing through forest northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō for the past several months, but last week deflation at the summit of Kīlauea led to a reduction in lava supply and a shutdown to the flow front as active breakouts diminished.