Yesterday evening, September 14, new fissures began breaking out along the base of the northwest wall of Halema‘uma‘u crater, north of the episodic lava fountaining vents that have persisted since December 23, 2024, at the summit of Kīlauea. These fissures have effused pāhoehoe lava flows onto the crater floor, seen here with a silvery color, as observed during a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight this morning, September 15. The lava fountaining vents can be seen in the upper left of the frame, still emitting a volcanic gas plume. USGS photo by M. Zoeller.

During the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight of Kīlauea summit this morning, September 15, the crew made a brief stop on the Halema‘uma‘u crater floor to collect a fresh lava sample from the new flows that have erupted since yesterday evening. One of the flows was hugging the base of the crater wall, heading northeast, with its active front seen in the foreground here. From this vantage, the sampling crew could see all the way up to the vent complex that has built from lava fountaining episodes at the summit of Kīlauea since December 23, 2024. The north vent, with a small spatter cone that has formed over the past few days, features prominently on the skyline near the left edge of the frame. USGS photo by M. Zoeller.

This low-angle aerial view of the new fissures and lava flows in Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea was captured during a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight this morning, September 15. The new fissures have exclusively effused pāhoehoe lava flows, with their silver sheen contrasting dramatically the gray/brown of spatter-fed ‘a‘ā flows in this area from recent lava fountaining episodes. USGS photo by M. Zoeller.

Near the end of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight this morning, August 15, the crew passed by the Halema‘uma‘u eruptive vents that have fed lava fountaining episodes at the summit of Kīlauea since December 23, 2024. Seen here is the north vent, which was actively spattering during the flight, having built a small cone over the past few days that now stands about 40 feet (12 meters) tall. The south vent was also incandescent, but the west vent that appeared in early August was dark today. USGS photo by M. Zoeller.

New fissures opened up on and near the base of the northwest wall of Halemaʻumaʻu crater last night, north of the established vent complex at the summit of Kīlauea. The F1cam, located on the northwest rim of the crater, captured the evolution of lava flows from these new eruptive features, as visible in this animated GIF spanning the evening of September 14-15, 2026. USGS webcam gif.

New fissures opened up on and near the base of the northwest wall of Halemaʻumaʻu crater last night, north of the established vent complex at the summit of Kīlauea. The KWcam, located on the northwest rim of the crater, captured the evolution of lava flows from these new eruptive features, as visible in this animated GIF spanning the evening of September 14-15, 2026. The eruptive activity is visible in the lower right part of the image. USGS webcam gif.

New fissures opened up on and near the base of the northwest wall of Halemaʻumaʻu crater last night, north of the established vent complex at the summit of Kīlauea. The B1cam, located on the south rim of the crater, captured the evolution of these new eruptive features, as visible in this animated GIF spanning the evening of September 14-15, 2026. In the compiled images, the main eruptive complex is visible in the left center, while the new eruptive activity appears just to the right of that. USGS webcam gif.