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Join USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist emeritus Don Swanson on a virtual walk, during which you learn about the past 500 years of Kīlauea Volcano’s history as revealed by rocks, craters, and cracks. This virtual walk will be released in three parts, covering different sections of the Keanakākoʻi Crater trail.
Along the walk, Don points out and explains some of the features that formed during the 2018 summit collapse events, as well as the best publicly accessible display of explosive deposits erupted from Kīlauea around 230–370 years ago, one of which probably relates to an important oral tradition. Don also shows two contrasting vents for the July 1974 eruption, highlights the thick deposit of pumice and scoria erupted in 1959, and ponders the origin of Keanakākoʻi Crater.
Other Island of Hawaiʻi virtual Volcano Awareness Month 2021 programs available:
Plumbing the depths of Kīlauea Volcano - POSTPONED
One of the key goals of volcanology is to monitor the movement of molten rock (magma) beneath the Earth’s surface. Most volcanoes have their main storage area for magma a mile or two beneath the volcano in the Earth’s crust. Kīlauea Volcano is very different and stores magma within the volcano itself, about a mile beneath its summit. This is only possible because Kīlauea is so enormous it can store a large volume of magma. In addition, the amount of magma moving through the system is so high that it doesn’t stay within the volcano long enough to crystallize. To the average person, and quite frankly often to volcanologists as well, the pattern of volcanic vent locations at Kīlauea's summit or along its rift zones looks a lot like the game “Whack-a-mole,” where the eruptions seem to randomly appear. However, there are patterns and our concept of what Kīlauea’s magma plumbing system looks like has changed significantly over time. After large eruptions like the 2018 eruption in Puna, Kīlauea’s plumbing appears to undergo significant re-organization. While the recent reappearance of lava at Kīlauea’s summit happened quickly, summit activity was not unexpected. Join geologist Ken Hon as he discusses what scientists are looking for now to better understand what Kilauea may do in the future.
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