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Photo and Video Chronology – Hawaiian Volcano Observatory – September 9, 2022

By Hawaiian Volcano Observatory September 9, 2022

Photos and videos of the recent activity on Kīlauea volcano and the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory response to seismic unrest in American Samoa.

HVO scientists collect detailed data to assess hazards and understand how the eruption is evolving at Kīlauea's summit, all of which are shared with the National Park Service and emergency managers. Access to this hazardous area is by permission from, and in coordination with, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. The current eruption at Kīlauea's summit began at approximately 3:20 p.m. HST on September 29, 2021. Lava activity is confined within Halema‘uma‘u crater, in the closed area of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

 

September 9, 2022 — Intermittent spattering on the northeast rim of Kīlauea summit lava lake

 

Color photograph of lava lake
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Field crews monitoring Kīlauea's summit lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u the morning of September 9, 2022, observed sloshing on the northeast margin of the lake that produced spatter bursts pictured in this image. The spatter clots were thrown up to 10 m (33 ft) into the air before landing back on the lava lake crust. USGS image by C. Parcheta.

 

September 7, 2022 — USGS Installs GPS Stations on Ta‘ū Island in American Samoa

 

Color photograph of scientist deploying instrument in the field
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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.
Color photograph of monitoring equipment
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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. The GPS units will complement recently-installed seismometers, which record earthquake activity occurring in American Samoa. USGS image by A. Ellis.
Color photograph of monitoring equipment
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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. The GPS unit will measure changes in the ground motion, a monitoring dataset that will complement recently-installed seismometers that are recording earthquake activity in American Samoa. USGS image by A. Ellis.

 

September 6, 2022 — Kīlauea  Southwest Rift Zone Seismic Nodes Being Collected

 

Color photograph of scientists in field
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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. With permission from the National Park and landowners, the nodes were deployed as part of a project funded by the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Act of 2019 (H.R. 2157) in an effort to better understand the deep earthquake activity beneath the Pāhala region. On the far side of the fence, the "Great Crack" is visible; this feature parallels Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone and in 1823, lava erupted from the lower 6 miles (10 km) of the crack. You can learn more about the Great Crack and 1823 eruption in this "Volcano Watch" article: https://www.usgs.gov/news/volcano-watch-are-we-breaking-away-great-crack. USGS image by K. Mulliken.

 

Color photograph of scientist in field
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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. HVO scientists will use the data collected by the network of over 80 seismic nodes to create images of the structure of the Earth beneath Pāhala from as great as 40–50 km (25–31 miles) below sea level all the way to the surface. You can learn more about the project in this “Volcano Watch” article: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo/news/volcano-watch-using-earthquakes-look-under-hood-pahala. USGS image by K. Mulliken.
Color photograph of scientists in the field
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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. You can learn more about the project in this “Volcano Watch” article: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo/news/volcano-watch-using-earthquakes-look-under-hood-pahala. Mauna Loa is visible in the background. USGS image by K. Mulliken.
Color photograph of lava tree
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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. This coating temporarily insulates the tree from the lava flowing around it, but eventually the tree burns but leaves behind a cavity where it used to exist. The direction that the lava flow travelled is visible in the direction that the lava wrapped around the tree. USGS image by K. Mulliken.
Color photograph of lava tree
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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. Eventually, the eruption stopped and the tree burned away, but it left behind this lava tree as evidence of how thick the lava flow had been as well as the vegetation that existed in the area before the eruption. The 1823 eruption is known as the KEAIWA eruption and it was noteworthy for erupting very fluid lava exhibited by this lava tree. You can read more about lava trees and that eruption in this "Volcano Watch" article: https://www.usgs.gov/news/volcano-watch-tis-season-tinsel-and-trees-celebrating-hawaiis-own-unusual-trees. USGS image by K. Mulliken.

 

August 30, 2022 — Collecting Rock Samples on Ta‘ū Island

 

Scientist collecting a rock sample
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A USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist collects a rock sample using a rock hammer on Ta‘ū Island, American Samoa. HVO staff are in American Samoa responding to earthquake activity. While there to install monitoring instrumentation, they are also collecting rock samples to better understand past volcanic activity in American Samoa. USGS image by J. Chang.
Color photograph of scientist collecting rock sample
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A USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist collects a sample of a pāhoehoe lava flow above a thick ‘a‘ā lava flow on Ta‘ū Island, American Samoa. At that location, samples of a sequence of alternating pāhoehoe and ‘a‘ā lava flows were sampled to help reconstruct the eruptive history of Ta‘ū volcano. HVO staff are in American Samoa responding to earthquake activity. While there to install monitoring instrumentation, they are also collecting some rock samples to better understand past volcanic activity in American Samoa. USGS image by J. Chang.

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