Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.
Volcano Hazard Program images.
The Kahauale‘a 2 flow remains active northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, with the flow front this week consisting of a narrow finger that has reached 7.5 km (4.7 miles) northeast of the vent on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The flow front has cut a narrow swath through the forest, and is igniting numerous small fires.
The Kahauale‘a 2 flow remains active northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, with the flow front this week consisting of a narrow finger that has reached 7.5 km (4.7 miles) northeast of the vent on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The flow front has cut a narrow swath through the forest, and is igniting numerous small fires.
Map showing the submarine shape of the Hawaiian hotspot track, which extends from the Hawaiian Islands, through a prominent bend in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, to Alaska's Aleutian Islands. The inset shows the volcanoes in the main Hawaiian Islands.
Map showing the submarine shape of the Hawaiian hotspot track, which extends from the Hawaiian Islands, through a prominent bend in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, to Alaska's Aleutian Islands. The inset shows the volcanoes in the main Hawaiian Islands.
The Kahauale‘a 2 flow remains active northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, with the flow front this week consisting of a narrow finger that has reached 7.5 km (4.7 miles) northeast of the vent on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The flow front has cut a narrow swath through the forest, and is igniting numerous small fires.
The Kahauale‘a 2 flow remains active northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, with the flow front this week consisting of a narrow finger that has reached 7.5 km (4.7 miles) northeast of the vent on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The flow front has cut a narrow swath through the forest, and is igniting numerous small fires.
During the first few hours of the Kamoamoa fissure eruption in March 2011, lava bubbled to the surface through a ground crack that propagated along Kīlauea Volcano's East Rift Zone. How it and other Hawaiian fissure eruptions work will be the topic of a talk at UH-Hilo on January 16, 2014.
During the first few hours of the Kamoamoa fissure eruption in March 2011, lava bubbled to the surface through a ground crack that propagated along Kīlauea Volcano's East Rift Zone. How it and other Hawaiian fissure eruptions work will be the topic of a talk at UH-Hilo on January 16, 2014.
Erupting vents on Mauna Loa's Northeast Rift Zone near Pu‘u‘Ula‘ula (Red Hill) on Mar. 25, 1984—just hours after the eruption began—sent massive ‘A‘ā lava flows moving toward Hilo at 4 miles per hour. By the time the eruption ended on April 15, lava flows had reached to within four miles of Hilo city limits. USGS photo.
Erupting vents on Mauna Loa's Northeast Rift Zone near Pu‘u‘Ula‘ula (Red Hill) on Mar. 25, 1984—just hours after the eruption began—sent massive ‘A‘ā lava flows moving toward Hilo at 4 miles per hour. By the time the eruption ended on April 15, lava flows had reached to within four miles of Hilo city limits. USGS photo.
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory seismologists will talk about Hawaii's history of destructive earthquakes in two public presentations. Paul Okubo (right) will speak at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo on November 20, and Wes Thelen (left) will speak in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park on November 26.
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory seismologists will talk about Hawaii's history of destructive earthquakes in two public presentations. Paul Okubo (right) will speak at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo on November 20, and Wes Thelen (left) will speak in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park on November 26.
Julia Griswold is a geologist with the USGS-USAID Volcano Disaster Assistance Program.
Julia Griswold is a geologist with the USGS-USAID Volcano Disaster Assistance Program.
Seismogram signal examples from volcanic earthquakes: volcano tectonic (VT) Low Frequency (LF)/Deep Long-Period (DLP), hybrid (mix of VT and LF), very low frequency (VLF), and Tremor.
Seismogram signal examples from volcanic earthquakes: volcano tectonic (VT) Low Frequency (LF)/Deep Long-Period (DLP), hybrid (mix of VT and LF), very low frequency (VLF), and Tremor.
Trout Lake lowland view from the south, downslope from Mount Adams, Washington. The lowland area along the White Salmon River (trees) is underlain by lahar deposits 300 and 6000 years old.
Trout Lake lowland view from the south, downslope from Mount Adams, Washington. The lowland area along the White Salmon River (trees) is underlain by lahar deposits 300 and 6000 years old.
In left foreground, ice-ravaged mafic edifice Little Brother is separated from North Sister by Little Ice Age trough of Collier Glacier. Both North Sister and Little Brother expose numerous oxidized scoria falls, whereas smooth black Middle Sister cone is cloaked by mafic lava flows.
In left foreground, ice-ravaged mafic edifice Little Brother is separated from North Sister by Little Ice Age trough of Collier Glacier. Both North Sister and Little Brother expose numerous oxidized scoria falls, whereas smooth black Middle Sister cone is cloaked by mafic lava flows.
Photo of Crater Lake with oblique bathymetric image of the caldera floor beneath the lake's surface. Oregon
Photo of Crater Lake with oblique bathymetric image of the caldera floor beneath the lake's surface. Oregon
Time history of Yellowstone Caldera uplift (black line) and subsidence patterns along with quarterly catalog earthquake counts (blue bars). Note that large swarms in 1985 and 2010 accompany uplift to subsidence of caldera. The vertical deformation on the right axis was measured at the Sour Creek (SC) dome in the eastern part of the Yellowstone Caldera.
Time history of Yellowstone Caldera uplift (black line) and subsidence patterns along with quarterly catalog earthquake counts (blue bars). Note that large swarms in 1985 and 2010 accompany uplift to subsidence of caldera. The vertical deformation on the right axis was measured at the Sour Creek (SC) dome in the eastern part of the Yellowstone Caldera.
The seismic records or waveforms are from two seismic stations, and show the highly repetitive and similar nature of the seismic events.
The seismic records or waveforms are from two seismic stations, and show the highly repetitive and similar nature of the seismic events.
Map showing one-year probability of accumulation of 1 centimeter (0.4 inch) or more of tephra from eruptions of volcanoes in the Cascade Range.
Map showing one-year probability of accumulation of 1 centimeter (0.4 inch) or more of tephra from eruptions of volcanoes in the Cascade Range.
Tabernacle Hill tuff cone, part of the Black Rock Desert Volcanic Field in Utah, used to house a lava lake in the center of the crater.
Tabernacle Hill tuff cone, part of the Black Rock Desert Volcanic Field in Utah, used to house a lava lake in the center of the crater.
CalVO geologist Mae Marcaida examines thin layers of volcanic ash sandwiched between thick beds of sediment deposited by ancestral Mono Lake in eastern California. Each ash layer is evidence of a past explosive eruption of the Mono Craters, which began erupting about 65,000 years ago just south of present-day Mono Lake.
CalVO geologist Mae Marcaida examines thin layers of volcanic ash sandwiched between thick beds of sediment deposited by ancestral Mono Lake in eastern California. Each ash layer is evidence of a past explosive eruption of the Mono Craters, which began erupting about 65,000 years ago just south of present-day Mono Lake.
Map of Mount St. Helens Crater Glacier created from LiDAR data acquired September 2009.
Map of Mount St. Helens Crater Glacier created from LiDAR data acquired September 2009.
Top: Map of repeating earthquake areas corresponding to the deformation episodes, below. Bottom: Left 1996-1998 Yellowstone caldera uplift episode. Middle: 1998-2004 subsidence episode. Right: 2004-2010 uplift episode. Bottom: vertical ground deformation from GPS observations at station, WLWY, on the Sour Creek resurgent dome.
Top: Map of repeating earthquake areas corresponding to the deformation episodes, below. Bottom: Left 1996-1998 Yellowstone caldera uplift episode. Middle: 1998-2004 subsidence episode. Right: 2004-2010 uplift episode. Bottom: vertical ground deformation from GPS observations at station, WLWY, on the Sour Creek resurgent dome.
Top: Examples of some of the photos taken from helicopter over Mammoth Hot Springs in September 2013. Photos taken by Hank Heasler. Bottom: Hill-shade image calculated from the 2013 DEM over Mammoth Hot Springs and that was derived from a series of overlapping photos using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry.
Top: Examples of some of the photos taken from helicopter over Mammoth Hot Springs in September 2013. Photos taken by Hank Heasler. Bottom: Hill-shade image calculated from the 2013 DEM over Mammoth Hot Springs and that was derived from a series of overlapping photos using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry.
This shaded relief image was produced from LIDAR data. LIDAR is an acronym for Light Detection and Ranging, a modern remote sensing technique used to map topography very accurately—more so than is possible with older techniques. The crater is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) wide east-west. Elsewhere the scale varies owing to the oblique viewing angle.
This shaded relief image was produced from LIDAR data. LIDAR is an acronym for Light Detection and Ranging, a modern remote sensing technique used to map topography very accurately—more so than is possible with older techniques. The crater is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) wide east-west. Elsewhere the scale varies owing to the oblique viewing angle.
Wes Hildreth is an expert when it comes to studying the Long Valley Caldera. Here, he is standing on Tertiary basalt lava flows on the north rim of the caldera, view to the southeast with Lake Crowley visible in the center of the caldera, and McGee Mountain above the lake on the skyline.
Wes Hildreth is an expert when it comes to studying the Long Valley Caldera. Here, he is standing on Tertiary basalt lava flows on the north rim of the caldera, view to the southeast with Lake Crowley visible in the center of the caldera, and McGee Mountain above the lake on the skyline.