Photo & Video Chronology — August 13, 2025 — Field sampling a new fissure from Episode 30 in Halemaʻumaʻu crater at Kīlauea volcano.
Kīlauea is not erupting. Episode 30 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption ended abruptly at 12:55 p.m. HST on August 6 after 12 hours of continuous fountaining. A new fissure vent that transected the south wall of Halemaʻumaʻu ceased erupting at 4:40 a.m. HST on the morning of August 6. Spatter from this fissure was sampled on August 13 to better understand the source and storage of magma.
Halemaʻumaʻu fissure sampling on August 13, 2025
August 13 - View of the lava/tephra pile from the sampling location on the temporary fissure from episode 30. The helicopter landed on the crater floor on the new pāhoehoe lava that formed while the talus slope of the fissure vent was erupting.
On August 13, USGS scientists collect recent spatter samples of episode 30 lava from a temporary fissure feature that appeared early in episode 30. The chemistry of these lava samples is analyzed to better understand the source and storage of magma driving Hawaiian eruptions. USGS photo by K. Mulliken
This image from August 13, 2025, shows spatter on the western wall of Halema‘uma‘u crater where samples were collected. No molten lava was visible during the overflight and the Kīlauea summit eruption remains paused. USGS photo by D. Downs