Images

A portion of Crater Rim Drive that was damaged during Kīlauea's 2018 summit collapse events was visible during a Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitoring overflight on March 2, 2022. Crater Rim Drive used to go around Kīlauea summit caldera within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

Telephoto view of the distal (east) margin of the active lava lake within Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. Minor spattering is visible along the margin, as well as a zone of crustal foundering (a process in which more cool and dense crust at the surface sinks into the molten material below). USGS image by K. Mulliken.

Aerial image taken at approximately 8:30 a.m. during a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight on March 2, 2022. In the foreground, the Ha‘akulamanu trail in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park passes through the Sulphur Banks area, while the plume from the ongoing eruption within Halema‘uma‘u crater rises from Kīlauea caldera in the background. USGS photo by K.

A helicopter overflight on March 2, 2022, allowed for aerial visual and thermal imagery to be collected of Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. The active lake surface is limited to the western portion of the crater.

This aerial photo, taken south of Halema‘uma‘u crater, shows the active part of the eruption at Kīlauea summit during a routine Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitoring overflight on March 2, 2022.

Telephoto view of the distal (east) margin of the active lava lake within Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. Minor spattering is visible along the margin, as well as a zone of crustal foundering (a process in which more cool and dense crust at the surface sinks into the molten material below). USGS image by K. Mulliken. 

Aerial view showing Keanakāko‘i crater, located on the south side of Kīlauea summit caldera. Crater Rim Drive, which remains closed to vehicles, is visible cross-cutting the image. Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park has opened an eruption viewing area to the north of Keanakāko‘i crater, which is is visible in approximately the bottom center portion of the image.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists captured this view of Wahinekapu (Steaming Bluff) and the Steam Vents area within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park during a routine morning overflight on March 2, 2022. Cracks in this area allow heated groundwater, which reaches up to 63 degrees Celsius (145 degrees Fahrenheit), to escape from underground as steam.

Aerial view of Halema‘uma‘u crater and the ongoing eruption within it. This view, to the northeast, shows one of several down-dropped blocks that formed during Kīlauea's summit collapse events in 2018.

This telephoto view, taken during a eruption monitoring overflight of Kīlauea summit on March 2, 2022, shows the west vent area within Halema‘uma‘u crater. Lava erupts from multiple locations near where the west vent cone, which has broken down over the past several weeks, was located.

A helicopter overflight on March 2, 2022, allowed for aerial visual and thermal imagery to be collected of Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. The active lake surface is limited to the western portion of the crater.

Preview image for thermal camera timelapse of summit lava lake growth. USGS image. 

On Friday, February 18, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists visited the Halema‘uma‘u crater rim to observe the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption. At the time of their visit, the lava lake in the western portion of the crater had drained substantially in association with deflation of the summit region.

A portion of the updated 2021 Geologic Map of the State of Hawai‘i showing part of the District of Puna in the County of Hawaii, where recent lava flow units have been added to the map. In this figure, the new lava flow units have been colored differently than the published map to emphasize their location. USGS map.

This image was captured by the F1cam, a thermal camera located on the west rim of the caldera and looking east, at 4:42 a.m. HST on February 10, 2022. It shows the eruption within Halema‘uma‘u crater, at the summit of Kīlauea. USGS image. 

A 1-meter (3-foot)-high standing wave was present in the spillway that is feeding the active portion of Kīlauea's summit lava lake, as seen from the west side of Halema‘uma‘u crater (in the vicinity of the KWcam and looking to the east). USGS photo by L. Gallant

This view of the western vent in Halema‘uma‘u was captured on February 10, 2022. The pond north of the west vent generally feeds the active part of the lava lake at the summit of Kīlauea volcano through the spillway seen on the top right of the photograph.

On the afternoon of Monday, February 7, 2022, Kīlauea's summit lava lake activity was located on the west side of Halema‘uma‘u crater.

Lava cascades from a pond north of the west vent in Halema‘uma‘u into the active lava lake in the western portion of the crater. On the afternoon of February 4, the pond was measured as about one meter (a few feet) higher than the larger lava lake at the summit of Kīlauea. USGS photo by K. Mulliken.

The west vent in Halema‘uma‘u was glowing as Kīlauea's summit eruption continued through the afternoon of February 4, 2022. From the west rim of Kīlauea caldera, HVO geologists could hear gas-jetting noises from the west vent, as well as from the spatter features on the inactive lava lake surface in the eastern portion of Halema‘uma‘u. USGS photo by K. Mulliken.

During the afternoon of February 4, HVO geologists observed abundant spattering within the perched margin of the active part of the lava lake in the west portion of Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea volcano. Over the weekend, the eruption has continued, with slight fluctuations in lava output. USGS image by K. Mulliken.