Volcano Watch

Kīlauea has been erupting for nearly 18 years, and there is no sign of it stopping anytime soon. But all previous Kīlauea eruptions ended, and there's...

To many of us, Hawaiian volcanoes loom sleepily overhead, occasionally stirring from their slumber and oozing lava flows down their flanks toward the...

Driving along the Queen Ka`ahumanu highway from Kailua-Kona to Waikoloa, one passes a vast expanse of well-exposed lava rock. These flows are from...

Sweeping vistas into Haleakalā Crater are seen in the final stretch of road at Haleakalā National Park, from the summit visitor center to the top of...

Earthquakes occur every day on the Island of Hawai`i. Most are small, less than magnitude 3, but typically a couple are felt by someone each week...

Lava flows and volcanic eruptions played a major role in the Earth's history since it was formed some four billion years ago. We can look at rocks...

Cats have been our pets and rat-catchers since the dawn of civilization. Many of us grew up with cats or now keep them (including the authors of this...

Those of you who pay attention to the goings-on of the volcano are well aware that the quality of lava viewing is highly uneven. Some days you can...

Sometimes in science you find something that theory says you shouldn't. Then your pulse starts racing. Are your observations or calculations wrong? Is...

What do Kīlauea Volcano's eruption and Hilo's 7:30 a.m. traffic have in common? For one thing, lots of stops and starts. The stops and starts in the...

The past two weeks have seen changes in Kīlauea's eruption. The changes aren't fundamental, but they do impact the viewing public. The ocean entry has...

Late last week geophysicist Michael Lisowski and his family left Hilo for Vancouver, Washington, and the Cascades Volcano Observatory. 

The weekly newspaper series "Volcano Watch" has been published continuously since November 1991. Its articles keep Big Island residents informed about...

How much magma enters Kīlauea every day? How much is erupted to the surface? How much stays underground?
 

In our "Volcano Watch" series and in our scientific reports and presentations, we present and discuss findings relating to volcanoes and earthquakes. ...

Several million years ago, when Kaua`i was the youngest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, and Pele made her home in the caldera atop Mount Waialeale...

We recently completed a leveling survey along the Ka`u trail in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park. This 16-km (10 mi) route runs inland from the south...

A TV crew doing a documentary on lighthouses in Hawai`i recently asked HVO if erupting Kīlauea and Mauna Loa could have served as natural beacons for...

In recent weeks the U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has begun a program to install new instrumentation to help monitor Mauna Loa...

The Wailuku River is an important landmark to geologists, because it marks the approximate boundary between the lava flows of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa...