Images

The part of the Overlook crater wall that collapsed is evident in the center of this photo by its white color.

The part of the Overlook crater wall that collapsed is evident in the center of this photo by its white color.

Map showing the "June 27 breakout" flow at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō in Kīlauea's East Rift Zone. The area of the new flow as mapped on June 30 is shown in pink, while widening of the flow as July 18 is shown in red.

Since the onset of the "June 27 breakout" flow, the central part of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's crater has been collapsing slowly. Thick fume and steam prevented good views, but this photo shows the edge of the ring fracture that bounds the collapse. The heavy fume comes from pits that formed where spatter cones used to be.

After the June 27 breakout started, a perched lava pond - looking something like a giant above-ground swimming pool - grew over the main vent. Notice the nearly flat upper surface of the now-inactive pond just above and to the left of center, and the relatively steep levee which contained the pond.

After the June 27 breakout started, a perched lava pond - looking something like a giant above-ground swimming pool - grew over the main vent. Notice the nearly flat upper surface of the now-inactive pond just above and to the left of center, and the relatively steep levee which contained the pond.

Here is steeper view of the inactive lava pond, just left of center. After it was abandoned, its surface crusted over and sagged to form a gentle bowl. Skylights and points of fume just right of center mark the trace of the new tube. Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is at upper right. The view is toward the south-southeast.

Here is steeper view of the inactive lava pond, just left of center. After it was abandoned, its surface crusted over and sagged to form a gentle bowl. Skylights and points of fume just right of center mark the trace of the new tube. Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is at upper right. The view is toward the south-southeast.

Perhaps the most interesting feature in the new crater at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is the pit formed on the southern side of the crater floor. There, a small lava pond roughly 10 m (~30 ft) across has been sporadically overflowing and sending lava toward the deeper central part of the crater. View is to the south.

The front of the "June 27 breakout" flow, seen here as the silvery lava at lower right, is about 2.0 km (~1.2 miles) northeast from its vent (as measured in a straight line), and surrounds what little remains of Pu‘u Kahauale‘a, a forested cone several hundred years old. View is toward the southwest, and Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is at upper right.

Since the onset of the "June 27 breakout" flow, the central part of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's crater has been collapsing slowly. Thick fume and steam prevented good views, but this photo shows the edge of the ring fracture that bounds the collapse. The heavy fume comes from pits that formed where spatter cones used to be.

Perhaps the most interesting feature in the new crater at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is the pit formed on the southern side of the crater floor. There, a small lava pond roughly 10 m (~30 ft) across has been sporadically overflowing and sending lava toward the deeper central part of the crater. View is to the south.

The front of the "June 27 breakout" flow, seen here as the silvery lava at lower right, is about 2.0 km (~1.2 miles) northeast from its vent (as measured in a straight line), and surrounds what little remains of Pu‘u Kahauale‘a, a forested cone several hundred years old. View is toward the southwest, and Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is at upper right.

Here is a closer view showing the beleaguered Pu‘u Kahauale‘a surrounded by active pāhoehoe flows. The view is to the northwest.

Volcanic-gas "sniffer" installed at Mammoth Mountain, California measures temperature plus carbon dioxide and other gas concentration from a steaming vent.

Streamflow measurement and water sampling at Paradise Creek are part of the regular measurements taken during hydrothermal monitoring campaigns at Mount Rainier, Washington.

The A-train constellation of earth observing satellites. Included is the recently added OCO-2 mission spacecraft (leading the train at far right), which will focus on improving our understanding of the global carbon cycle by mapping Earth's CO2 distribution approximately once every 2 weeks for the next 2 years or more. Image, courtesy of NASA.

Mount Baker in the background of the Tesoro oil refinery in Padilla Bay, Washington. Volcanic hazards from Mount Baker such as ash fall could impact this refinery during a future eruption.

The June 27 breakout has remained active over the past week, emitting short lava flows from the vent on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's northeast flank. These flows have stacked upon one another creating a lava shield, which now hosts a lava pond.

Elevated pressure within Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō cone reached a breaking point on June 27 with magma intruding through the cone and erupting from fissures on the northeast flank of the cone. These new vents fed a vigorous, but still relatively short, channelized flow that had reached about 1.5 km (0.9 miles) northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō by 11 a.m.

Map showing the June 27, 2014, breakout and the Kahauale‘a 2 flow in relation to the eastern part of the Island of Hawai‘i as of June 30, 2014. The Kahauale‘a 2 flow (pale orange) is no longer active — it was beheaded when the lava level at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō dropped with the onset of the June 27 breakout.