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Daily updates about ongoing eruptions, recent images and videos of summit and East Rift Zone volcanic activity, maps, and data about recent earthquakes in Hawaii are posted on the HVO website. 

Volcano Watch is a weekly article and activity update written by U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists and colleagues.

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Volcano Watch — Using the ocean to track volcanic activity at Kīlauea

Volcano Watch — Using the ocean to track volcanic activity at Kīlauea

Ocean swells occur continuously around the world. As these swells rise and fall, they couple with the ocean floor below them creating a constant...

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Volcano Watch — “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin

Volcano Watch — “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin

Mauna Loa has been in the news lately, as the volcano continues to awaken from its slumber. While an eruption of Mauna Loa is not imminent, now is the...

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Volcano Watch — Seismicity preceding the 2020 eruption of Kīlauea Volcano

Volcano Watch — Seismicity preceding the 2020 eruption of Kīlauea Volcano

Pele returned to the summit of Kīlauea on the evening of December 20, 2020. Incredible video documents the start of the new eruption in Halema‘uma‘u...

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Volcano Watch — When will Mauna Loa erupt next?

Volcano Watch — When will Mauna Loa erupt next?

“When will Mauna Loa erupt next?” This was the title of a Volcano Awareness Month video presentation released by the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory...

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Volcano Watch — What’s going on at Kīlauea’s summit lava lake?

Volcano Watch — What’s going on at Kīlauea’s summit lava lake?

Kīlauea’s current lava lake formed on December 20th and rose rapidly within Halema‘uma‘u crater during the dynamic first week of the ongoing summit...

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Volcano Watch — Ken Hon returns to HVO as Scientist-in-Charge

Volcano Watch — Ken Hon returns to HVO as Scientist-in-Charge

The next USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) Scientist-in-Charge (SIC) has been named, and it’s a name that Island of Hawai‘i residents may be...

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Volcano Watch — Kīlauea’s south flank: What’s shaking?

Volcano Watch — Kīlauea’s south flank: What’s shaking?

This story begins after Kīlauea’s May 4, 2018, M6.9 earthquake and lower East Rift Zone eruption. The M6.9 earthquake resulted in seaward motion at...

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Volcano Watch — Words matter: lava, not fire, but island or raft or basalt berg?

Volcano Watch — Words matter: lava, not fire, but island or raft or basalt berg?

Words matter in volcanology just as in the rest of society. Words matter among volcanologists themselves, of course, but they particularly matter in...

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Volcano Watch — A closer look at Kīlauea’s newest lava

Volcano Watch — A closer look at Kīlauea’s newest lava

Every rock on Earth is made of up a unique combination of chemical elements, and lavas/tephra formed during Hawaiian eruptions are no exception. What...

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Volcano Watch — Gas math—how we know how much sulfur dioxide volcanoes emit

Volcano Watch — Gas math—how we know how much sulfur dioxide volcanoes emit

Volcanic gases are an important part of eruptions—they help magma to rise within the earth and erupt, they can tell us how much lava is being erupted...

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Volcano Watch — A new tephra lab for HVO eruption monitoring

Volcano Watch — A new tephra lab for HVO eruption monitoring

In addition to a new year and a new eruption, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) is ushering in a new era for processing and studying...

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Volcano Watch — Kīlauea’s ongoing eruption: a rising lava lake

Volcano Watch — Kīlauea’s ongoing eruption: a rising lava lake

It has been an exciting week at Kīlauea Volcano as the summit eruption that began on the evening of December 20th continues. The eruption remains...

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