Videos

Computer simulation of two planets undergoing a disruptive giant impact. Disruptive collisions are not expected to be common in Solar System formation and due to numerical effects, the amount of disruption shown here is likely overestimated. The larger (target) body is one tenth the mass of the Earth and the smaller (impactor) body is 70% the mass of the target.

Computer simulation of two planets undergoing a giant impact that results in a merger (accretion). The larger (target) body is one tenth the mass of the Earth and the smaller (impactor) body is 70% the mass of the target. The planets are colliding at 1.08 times their mutual escape velocity, which equates to 3.63 km/s.

Computer simulation of two planets undergoing a hit-and-run giant impact. This style of collision comprises around half of the giant impacts expected to occur during the latter stages of Solar System formation. The larger (target) body is one tenth the mass of the Earth and the smaller (impactor) body is 70% the mass of the target.

Yellowstone is a geologic wonderland with over 2 billion years of Earth's history recorded in the rocks. But some of that history is missing. Where did it go? We’ll look into that mystery in the October 2023 update from the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory.

No Place for Flamingos on Fuente de Piedra.

Fuente de Piedra, a saltwater lagoon in southern Spain, is an important breeding site for thousands of flamingos. In 2023, the shallow wetland nearly completely dried up, leaving little space for the birds. Only a few dozen birds were seen on the lagoon this year, a situation that could impact tourism.

Eruptive activity was shutting down at Kīlauea summit on Saturday, September 16, with only weak spattering at one vent in the morning. By midday, the eruptive activity had effectively ended.

This is a video compilation of Kīlauea volcano's summit eruption in September 2023. The video shows clips of the eruptive vents and lava fountains as the eruption progressed from September 10-16, 2023. 

This video was taken during an eruption-monitoring overflight on September 15, 2023. The eruption at the summit of Kīlauea continues, though with reduced vigor and a shrinking area of active lava. Over the past day one of the major vents shut down, leaving just two main vents active.

Several vents continued to erupt on the western side of the downdropped block within Kīlauea's summit caldera on September 6, 2023.  The roughly east-west trending active vents span approximately 0.5 miles (750 m) and had lava fountain heights of up to about 10 meters (32 feet).

During an HVO eruption monitoring overflight on September 12, 2023, HVO geologists landed on the downdropped block within Kīlauea's summit caldera and searched for a safe place to collect a lava sample.

The new eruption at the summit of Kīlauea volcano continues. Numerous fountains remain active on the downdropped block east of Halema‘uma‘u crater, with lava pouring west onto the crater floor.

During the morning of September 11, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists conducted an overflight of the new eruption within the Kīlauea summit caldera. The eruption is occurring in the east portion of Halemaʻumaʻu crater and on the downdropped block to the east, which formed during the 2018 summit collapse.

During an HVO eruption monitoring overflight on September 11, 2023, HVO geologist were able to land on the downdropped block within Kīlauea's summit caldera. They observed the line of erupting vents, several of which are visible in this video, as they searched for a safe location to collect a lava sample.

The B1cam, located on the east margin of the down-dropped block within Kīlauea caldera, captured the start of another eruption at the summit of Kīlauea volcano that began at 3:13 p.m. on September 10, 2023. This video shows a lava fountain bursting from a degassing area in the eastern portion of Halemaʻumaʻu crater, with the downdropped block in the foreground.

Another eruption at the summit of Kīlauea volcano began at 3:13 p.m. on September 10, 2023. This video, captured by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory's B2cam on the east rim of Halemaʻumaʻu crater, shows the opening phase of the eruption. A lava fountain bursts from a degassing area in the eastern portion of Halemaʻumaʻu crater.

This video, captured the evening of September 10, 2023, from near the Uēkahuna overlook within Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, shows the new eruption within Kīlauea caldera. After approximately an hour of elevated earthquake and ground deformation, the eruption began at 3:13 p.m. on September 10, 2023.

This timelapse video shows the first two days of the recent eruption at Kīlauea summit, which was active September 10 to 16, 2023. Over this initial period, the fountaining at either end of the fissure system gradually shuts down as activity focuses on the central portion. 

The Gibbon River, named for Colonel (later General) John Gibbon, who was a member of an early exploring survey of the Yellowstone region, starts near the Center of Yellowstone National Park. All of the outflow from Norris Geyser Basin drains into the river, which merges with the Firehole River in the west part of the park to become the Madison River.

Beryl Spring, in the Gibbon River Canyon, is chemically complex—it has a pool with a basic composition and a steam vent with an acidic composition! It’s location next to the highway has caused numerous problems for the road, requiring some creative engineering solutions and a lot of geological expertise!

In Yellowstone, a clue about whether a thermal feature is acidic or basic is the style of the feature. Pools of water are generally basic, while mud pots are acidic. Blue Mud Steam Vent is a classic example of an acidic mud pot.

Cinnamon Spouter, in Black Sand Basin, has long stretches of bubbling activity. A “sizziling fracture” was first noticed at this location in 1933, but little more was noted until the current spouting pool developed in 1988–1989.