Volcano Watch

If you’ve been following the ongoing eruption of Kīlauea, you may have seen the terms "gas piston" or "gas pistoning" show up in some of the USGS...

The spectacular series of Kīlauea eruption episodes over the past six months has been remarkably safe for public viewing, but a simple change in the...

As another school year ends, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) welcomes two new summer interns: Kamalani Poepoe and Ruth Gale. With an...

There is much to appreciate about the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption as it approaches its 6-month anniversary on June 23. The stunning episodic lava...

Recently, something has been observed “dancing” above the active eruptive vents inside Halemaʻumaʻu…Hydrogen flames! Let’s take a look into what...

Episode 23 of Kīlauea's ongoing eruption within Halemaʻumaʻu occurred on Sunday, May 25, 2025. Record-setting lava fountain and plume heights were...

Witnessing a volcanic eruption is, for many, a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park welcomes well over a million visitors...

Halemaʻumaʻu has been progressively filled by six eruptions at the summit of Kīlauea since 2020, and it continues to accumulate new lava with each...

On December 23, 2024, eruptive activity at Kīlauea’s summit began again with the first in what has become 20 discrete lava fountaining episodes. Many...

April is a month that carries deep layers of meaning on the Island of Hawaiʻi. April is the cherished time of the Merrie Monarch Festival—a week-long...

As people from around the world are captivated by episodic lava fountaining during the ongoing Kīlauea eruption in Halemaʻumaʻu, let’s use the current...

Although it may feel like it happened in an instant, the formation of the Island of Hawai‘i’s youngest black sand beach did not happen overnight. This...

The National Volcano Early Warning and Monitoring System (NVEWS) was first authorized by congress in 2019 to be established within the United States...

The episodic summit eruption of Kīlauea in Halemaʻumaʻu crater has been going on for over three months now, with sixteen eruptive episodes displaying...

When magma moves into the rift zone of a Hawaiian volcano, there is understandably a lot of excitement and apprehension.  How far will the magma go...

March 27 marks the anniversary of the onset of Mauna Loa’s dramatic 1868 eruption, when lava flows from the Southwest Rift Zone severely impacted the...

Consider a can of soda. When the can is closed (pressurized), the soda contains dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2). When you open the can, the pressure...

Kīlauea is in a unique phase of activity in Halemaʻumaʻu, with 12 episodes of dual lava fountains since December 23, 2024. Several past eruptions have...

It was a dark and stormy night…

No, this isn’t a ghost story or horror movie – it’s a “Volcano Watch” about the eruption last fall near Nāpau Crater on...

Kīlauea has been erupting episodically for the past two months in Halemaʻumaʻu, nested within the south end of Kaluapele, the summit caldera...