Images

View looking down onto the northeastern vent.

Lava fountains from the northeastern vent of the Kamoamoa eruption. Though it is an impressive sight, the Pu'u 'O 'o cone in the background, and several hundred meters higher, puts the current activity into perspective.

Overview of the Kamoamoa eruption looking south. The northeastern vent is to the left, and the southwestern vent is to the upper right. A river of lava, erupting from the southwestern vent, can be seen advancing toward the southeast through forest within Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.

Lava was reaching heights above the tree line.

Lava from the erupting fissure produced a large flow that is moving southeast through the adjacent forest.

With lava retreating deeper into the Halema'uma'u vent cavity over the past two days, the cavity walls have experienced more frequent collapses. At 2:23pm today (March 7), a collapse from the upper portion of the vent cavity produced a robust brown plume, but did not eject any large particles.

A close-up of the flow front in the forest.

Image from a thermal camera located on the rim of Halema‘uma‘u crater above the Overlook vent and looking into the vent after the lava lake nearly drained away completely starting March 5. Volcanic tremor and summit deflation began at about 1:42 p.m. HST on March 5, and was shortly followed by draining of the lava lake.

A broad view of the Kamoamoa fissures. The fissures extend 2.3 km (1.4 mi) between Napau Crater and Pu'u 'O 'o. The western most fissure is just out of view in this photo.

On the west end of the fissure system, spatter ramparts are forming as the lava fallout solidifies in a mound upwind from the source.

A view of the spattering source from the ground.

A piece of spatter ejected on March 7, 2011. Handheld GPS for scale.

Early morning view of the fissure eruption between Napau Crater and Pu'u 'O 'o. View is to the northwest. Fume from the eruptive vent in Halema'uma'u can be seen at upper right against the dark mass of Mauna Loa.

A close-up of the fissure just west of Pu'u 'O 'o Crater. Spatter was reaching heights of 40 m (130 ft).

This fissure began in the early hours of March 6, erupting spatter and producing lava flows.

HVO gas geochemist uses a Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer to measure volcanic gas compositions emitted during the 2011 Kamoamoa fissure eruption on the East Rift Zone of Kīlauea Volcano. The instrument measures the infrared energy from the hot lava fissure as it passes through, and is absorbed by, the volcanic plume along an open atmospheric path.

Increased activity on one of the new fissures between Pu'u 'O 'o Crater and Napau.

Lava pours from the fissure just after daybreak and cascades out of sight into a deep crack. HVO geologist near upper right for perspective.

A small fissure eruption between Pu'u 'O 'o Crater and Napau, extending 100 m long (330 ft) and spattering 20 m (66 ft) high.

Photo taken at dawn of a fissure erupting between Pu'u 'O 'o Crater and Napau.

HVO geologist carries a freshly quenched lava sample from the 2011 Kamoamoa fissure eruption on Kīlauea Volcano. Molten lava is quickly placed in a bucket of water to "freeze" the growth of minerals for chemical and microscopic analyses.