Images

Sulfur features northeast of Sulphur Cone at an elevation of 3,430 meters (11,240 feet) above sea level. Sulfur has a low melting temperature, about 112 degrees Celsius (234 degrees Fahrenheit), slightly above the boiling point of water.

Hawai‘i residents may find this photo reminiscent of the Ha‘akulamanu (Sulphur Banks) area of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, though the photo was taken high up on the Southwest Rift Zone of Mauna Loa! In an area known as Sulphur Cone, at an elevation of 3,430 meters (11,240 feet) above sea level, there are bright-yellow crystalline sulfur deposits present.

The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) has acquired new physical volcanology laboratory instruments for rapid and accurate analysis of eruption samples. Left photo shows four pycnometers that determine volume and density. Right photo shows two particle analyzers that determine grain size and shape. 

Sulphur Cone, high on the Southwest Rift Zone of Mauna Loa, was blanketed by sulfur crystals when it was named in 1921. A subsequent visit noted that molten sulfur had flowed down the flank of the cinder and spatter cone. The remnants of that yellow flow can be seen here on the flank of the cone.

Cover image for video of evening views of the eruption within Halema‘uma‘u crater on September 8, 2022.

The tuff cone on the northwest coast of Ta‘ū Island (near Faleāsao village) is mostly composed of fine-grained ash with larger lithic clasts (fragments of older rock material). Some of these lithic clasts are larger than 1 meter or 3 feet in diameter and are scattered throughout the tuff cone. USGS image by J. Chang.

At the Sulphur Cone MultiGas station on the Southwest Rift Zone of Mauna Loa, a thermocouple is housed within plastic tubing to protect it from the harsh environment. The thermocouple, which measures temperature, is inserted into a nearby fumarole (an area emitting volcanic gases) to detect subsurface changes in temperature. USGS image by T. Elias.

A Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist peers into the fissure that erupted in 1950 from the Southwest Rift Zone of Mauna Loa near Sulphur Cone. Water vapor and sulfur gases are still emitted from this fissure and surrounding area, which is at an elevation of 3,430 meters (11,240 feet) above sea level.

A photograph showing the inside of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) gas monitoring site at Sulphur Cone, high on the flanks of the Southwest Rift Zone of Mauna Loa. This MultiGas station is one of several that HVO has deployed on the Island of Hawai‘i.

USGS staff are on Ta‘ū Island in American Samoa to begin installing Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver monitoring sites. GPS equipment is able to detect very slight movements of the ground and will help the USGS to better understand what is happening beneath the ground and provide more accurate hazard assessments. USGS image by J. Chang.

Photograph of a Global Positioning System (GPS) station on Ta‘ū Island in American Samoa. Solar panels and batteries in a weather-proof enclosure power the station, which consists of a GPS unit placed on a tripod that is leveled and centered over a benchmark.

A USGS scientist checks the power supply at a Global Positioning System (GPS) station on Ta‘ū Island in American Samoa. The station consists of a GPS unit, which can measure changes in ground motion, placed on a tripod that is leveled and centered over a benchmark.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory staff and University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa collaborators walk on lava flows from 1823 along the Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park boundary fence as they hike to collect seismic nodes that have been deployed in Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone for the past two months.

During the 1823 eruption of Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone, lava contacted a tree. It quickly cooled, insulating the tree for a short time from the lava that continued to flow around it.

This week, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) staff and collaborators from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa are collecting seismic nodes on the Southwest Rift Zone of Kīlauea. This photo shows one of the stations, where a battery (silver box) connects to a seismic node being weighed down by a black sand bag.

Scientists take notes about the seismic station being collected from the field, where it has been collecting data for the past two months. These temporary seismic node stations were tightly grouped over Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone and Pāhala area in order to more densely record earthquake signals across the region.

A University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa graduate student uses a compass to check the orientation of a seismic node (blue) that was deployed on Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone over the past two months. Seismic nodes are small and light seismometers that measure ground shaking at the location where they are placed.

Lava erupted from Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone in 1823 formed this lava tree that stands approximately 4 feet (1.2 meters) high. Lava trees form when hot and flowing lava contacts a cool and moist tree, forming a coating of solid lava.

An HVO geologist uses a telephoto camera lens to document Kīlauea's summit eruption from the south rim of Halema‘uma‘u on September 2, 2022. The slope of Mauna Loa's Northeast Rift Zone is visible in the background of the left side of the image, whereas the summit of Kīlauea, at Uēkahuna Bluff, is visible in the background of the right side of the image.

A view of the eruption in Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea, taken on September 2, 2022, by HVO geologists on the south rim of the crater. Nice weather allowed for clear views of the active lava lake, which is in approximately the center of the image.

A telephoto view of the active lava lake within Halema‘uma‘u crater, at the summit of Kīlauea volcano. The active lava lake is approximately 3 acres (1 hectare) in area; however, lava flows from this eruption, which began on September 29, 2021, have covered approximately 282 acres (114 hectares). USGS image by K. Mulliken.