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Volcano Watch

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

Filter Total Items: 1730
Volcano Watch — So what on Earth (or at least on Kīlauea) is a “gas piston”?

Volcano Watch — So what on Earth (or at least on Kīlauea) is a “gas piston”?

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...

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Volcano Watch — Where does Kīlauea tephra go? The answer is blowin' in the wind

Volcano Watch — Where does Kīlauea tephra go? The answer is blowin' in the wind

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...

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Volcano Watch — School's out for Summer: Introducing New Interns at HVO!

Volcano Watch — School's out for Summer: Introducing New Interns at HVO!

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

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Volcano Watch — Six Months of Halemaʻumaʻu Lava Fountains

Volcano Watch — Six Months of Halemaʻumaʻu Lava Fountains

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...

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Volcano Watch — What Fans the Flames Observed at Volcanic Vents?

Volcano Watch — What Fans the Flames Observed at Volcanic Vents?

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

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Volcano Watch — Halemaʻumaʻu Eruption Reaches New Heights as HVO Updates Volcano Alert Notifications

Volcano Watch — Halemaʻumaʻu Eruption Reaches New Heights as HVO Updates Volcano Alert Notifications

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

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Volcano Watch — Inter-Episode Rumblings at Kīlauea

Volcano Watch — Inter-Episode Rumblings at Kīlauea

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

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Volcano Watch — What lurks beneath: learning from lava ooze outs

Volcano Watch — What lurks beneath: learning from lava ooze outs

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

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Volcano Watch — Twenty episodes and counting: lava fountains continue in Halemaʻumaʻu

Volcano Watch — Twenty episodes and counting: lava fountains continue in Halemaʻumaʻu

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...

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Volcano Watch — Hoʻomākaukau means preparedness

Volcano Watch — Hoʻomākaukau means preparedness

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...

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Volcano Watch — Tilt, Tremor, and Lava: Remembering Mauna Loa’s 2022 Eruption Onset

Volcano Watch — Tilt, Tremor, and Lava: Remembering Mauna Loa’s 2022 Eruption Onset

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

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Volcano Watch — How to build a beach: Pohoiki growth over the years

Volcano Watch — How to build a beach: Pohoiki growth over the years

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...

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Volcano Watch — A Focus on the National Volcano Information Service

Volcano Watch — A Focus on the National Volcano Information Service

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

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Volcano Watch — Kīlauea’s continuing summit eruption

Volcano Watch — Kīlauea’s continuing summit eruption

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

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Volcano Watch — Moving magma: What happens after a dike intrudes a rift zone?

Volcano Watch — Moving magma: What happens after a dike intrudes a rift zone?

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...

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Volcano Watch — A collapse at Mauna Loa’s summit in 1868, like Kīlauea’s in 2018?

Volcano Watch — A collapse at Mauna Loa’s summit in 1868, like Kīlauea’s in 2018?

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...

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Volcano Watch — All in a Day’s Work: Determining magma storage depths at Kīlauea

Volcano Watch — All in a Day’s Work: Determining magma storage depths at Kīlauea

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...

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Volcano Watch — When have lava fountains formed on Kīlauea and what are their hazards?

Volcano Watch — When have lava fountains formed on Kīlauea and what are their hazards?

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...

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Volcano Watch — The nose knows (and so did HVO gas instrumentation…eventually)

Volcano Watch — The nose knows (and so did HVO gas instrumentation…eventually)

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...

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Volcano Watch — What happens beneath the surface doesn’t always stay beneath the surface

Volcano Watch — What happens beneath the surface doesn’t always stay beneath the surface

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

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Volcano Watch — What’s shaking? Earthquake alerts explained

Volcano Watch — What’s shaking? Earthquake alerts explained

Earthquakes are a common occurrence in Hawaii. If you subscribe to emergency, earthquake, or volcano notifications, the shaking you feel might be...

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