Images

Ear Spring located on Geyser Hill, Yellowstone National Park, July 12, 2008.

GeoGirls analyze volcanic sediment at the Coldwater Lake outlet.

GeoGirls take core samples at a pond near the Hummocks Trail to study groundwater transport.

University of Utah seismologists install a nodal geophone on Kīlauea's lower East Rift Zone in June 2018. This instrument was part of a network of 82 seismometers deployed temporarily this summer to help scientists study the magma transport system beneath the volcano's eruption sites. USGS photo by B. Shiro.

GPS receiver for ground deformation monitoring (left) co-located with a seismome

Woods Hole Costal and Marine Science Center staff offered a presentation and handouts on Natural Hazards and Coastal Hazards in Wetlands and Estuaries  at the Smithsonian Science Education Academies for Teachers (SSEATs)

The GeoGirls examined tephra (ash and pumice) deposits from Mount St. Helens’ eruptive past and learned how to create a stratigraphic column.

Woods Hole Costal and Marine Science Center staff offered a presentation and handouts on Natural Hazards and Coastal Hazards in Wetlands and Estuaries  Smithsonian Science Education Academies for Teachers (SSEATs)

GPS monitoring station P709 is located on The Promontory between the South Arm and Southeast Arm of Yellowstone Lake. It was installed in 2005 as part of the Yellowstone component of the National Science Foundation's Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO) under permit YELL-SCI-5546. Photo from UNAVCO station overview page.

An Unmanned Aircraft Systems overflight of fissure 8 on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 1, 2018) showed incandescence within the cinder cone, with reports that lava had covered the 65x15 m (210x45 ft) crater floor by evening.

A black sand beach blocks the boat ramp at Isaac Hale Beach Park. The beach consists of fragmented lava rock that is slowly migrating west at Pohoiki Bay.

Southeast arm of Yellowstone Lake. Photo by Neal Herbert, Yellowstone National Park. Photo source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/yellowstonenps/15005709247/

An Unmanned Aircraft Systems overflight on Sunday afternoon (Sept. 2, 2018) showed that lava remained active within the fissure 8 cone.

This UAS oblique image of fissure 8 shows that the new lava is mostly confined to the crater floor within the cone, although a small amount extended a short distance into the spillway. HVO geologists noted that the lava activity was at a low level, with the area of incandescence decreasing to almost zero over the course of the afternoon.

Early this morning, the Unmanned Aircraft Systems team was able to conduct a brief overflight of fissure 8 between passing rain showers, which resulted in abundant steaming on the flow field.

Geologic field-trip guide of volcaniclastic sediments from snow- and ice-capped volcanoes—Mount St. Helens, Washington, and Mount Hood, Oregon: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5022–F, 97 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175022F.

Another aerial view of the summit crater from this morning's overflight. Zoom in to see HVO and the Park's Jaggar Museum on the caldera rim (right side of photo).

HVO field crews carefully traverse the uneven surface of the channel levee (left of image) to make measurements of the fissure 8 lava channel. The lava is slowly cooling and contracting but the area remains warm (note the steam rising). The view is to the east, with Puu Honuaula in the distance (right of image).

Void spaces within the cooled lava channel and along the channel margins create hazardous conditions on the fissure 8 flow field. Here, part of the void is visible, but a fragile veneer of lava hides other parts of it (upper right).

The caldera floor near Halema‘uma‘u is a jumble of down-dropped blocks and surface cracks. HVO field crews hiked along the roadway to verify the location of benchmarks (lower left) and prepare for additional geophysical work to document the changes. The road provided access to the Overlook parking area, closed since 2008.

This morning, USGS scientists flying over fissure 8 noticed a change in the vent from yesterday. Gas jets were throwing spatter—fragments of glassy lava (light gray deposits)—from small incandescent areas deep within the cone. This activity is an indication that the lower East Rift Zone eruption may be paused rather than pau (over).