Volcano Watch

Like fortune tellers who peer into a crystal ball for insight, volcanologists at the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) peer into the tiny...

The recent eruption of Kīlauea within Halemaʻumaʻu brought back an eruptive style not seen for many years.  The eruption included 3 episodes of lava...

People around the world greet the New Year with fireworks and other celebrations. This year, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park visitors greeted the New...

Kīlauea began erupting again on December 23, 2024. This is the eighth eruption of Kīlauea, and the sixth within Kaluapele, since 2020. These previous...

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) is part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the science agency of the U.S. Department of Interior. Our job is...

Interferograms are images created by radar satellites that show how the ground has changed shape, or deformed, over time. Today, we’ll dive into one...

The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitors the six currently active volcanoes in Hawaii, but past eruptions have shaped all of the Hawaiian...

The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) keeps its eyes on active volcanoes in many ways.  While old fashioned eyes and a notebook are used when...

In December 2022, a team of scientists from Aotearoa New Zealand teamed up with scientists from the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) to carry...

Native Hawaiian oral traditions record a rich history of the changing volcanic landscape in Hawaiʻi. Interweaving cultural knowledge with scientific...

Geologic mapping has been one of the most fundamental mandates of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) since its establishment in 1879. Congress created...

Over the past century, technological advancements have vastly improved volcano monitoring. One key innovation was the introduction of modern borehole...

The recent eruption at Nāpau Crater was the first on Kīlauea’s middle East Rift Zone (ERZ) in six years. We often remember the Pu‘u‘ō‘ō and Maunaulu...

The intense seismicity and ground deformation along the East Rift Zone of Kīlauea in the past couple of months is interpreted to indicate intrusion of...

In Hawaii, earthquakes are a common occurrence, and we should always practice earthquake preparedness. Millions of people around the world practice...

Topographic mapping has been a key component of volcano monitoring for decades, helping scientists to study morphologic changes and predict the paths...

Kīlauea is one of the most active volcanoes in the world with eruptions common both at its summit caldera and within its two rift zones. Frequent...

A new Kīlauea eruption began in a remote area of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park on Sunday, September 15, 2024. This is the first eruption on Kīlauea...

Since July 2024 activity, at Kīlauea has been punctuated by two periods of intense unrest, centered on the upper East Rift Zone (ERZ). The periods...

Photography has been a crucial part of volcano monitoring in Hawaii going back to the start of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO). In 1911...