Images

Day to day changes in the color of the water pond are common. This morning the pond had a browner hue compared to the previous observation on April 1, when the pond color was slightly more greenish yellow (see photo below).

Physical map of the western USA showing locations of strong earthquakes in March 2020 and Basin and Range extensional province. The Basin and Range stretches from the Sierra Nevada in the west to the Wasatch and Teton mountains in the east, and from central Idaho and southwest Montana in the north to Mexico in the south.

During the 1926 Mauna Loa eruption, an ‘a‘ā flow about 457 m (1500 ft) wide and 9 m (30 ft) high headed straight for the village of Ho‘ōpūloa on April 18, as shown here. By the next day, the lava flow had destroyed a dozen houses, a church, and the wharf, and had nearly obliterated the bay. Photo by Army Air Corps, 11th Photo Section.

The water pond from the webcam site. This view provides a better view of the greenish zone in the west end of the pond (bottom right of photo).

A closeup of the northern shoreline shows how opaque the water is against the rocks. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

Aerial view of a bomb detonating on Mauna Loa near the source of the 1935 Humu‘ula lava flow on the morning of December 27, 1935. This was one of 20 demolition bombs dropped on the lava flow that morning by the Army Bombing Squadron from Luke Field, O‘ahu.

A U.S. Army Air Corps biplane is prepared for a mission to drop bombs on a lava flow advancing toward Hilo during the Mauna Loa 1935 eruption.

Mushroom Pool, in the Lower Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park, as it looked in June 23, 1967. The sample that would be the source of Thermus aquaticus strain YT-1 came from this hot spring. Pictured is Thomas Brock standing near the edge of the pool. Image from the self-published "A Scientist in Yellowstone National Park" (Brock, 2017).

This timelapse sequence shows the water pond in Halema‘uma‘u Crater, at Kīlauea's summit, between November 1, 2019, and March 26, 2020. Over this time the water level rose approximately 14 meters (46 feet), equivalent to 67 cm (about 2 feet) per week. The timelapse shows one image per day (with a few cloudy images removed), and is looped several times.

Scanning electron microprobe images show the complexity of tiny Icelandic ash grains (150 micron, or 0.006 inch). Image (a) shows a dense and blocky grain, and (b) shows a foamy grain. Photos by J. Schmith.

Question: what's that in the shrubs?

Answer: a GPS capable of accurately measuring elevations to within 10 cm (~4 in). In the summer of 2019, USGS organized a Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) survey of the Kīlauea summit and East Rift Zone, including both the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō and 2018 lower Puna lava flows.

USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory News Media Management Guide—General Protocols and Templates, USGS Circular 1462 (https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/cir1462) provides protocols and templates for (1) normal conditions when CVO has an opportunity to be proactive with its messages and to raise general awaren

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists examine an outcrop of reddish-brown Hilo ash during a recent study to investigate the origins of volcanic ash deposits on the Island of Hawai‘i. Age dates of lava flows above and below the Hilo ash deposit indicate that the ash was erupted between 3,000 and 14,000 years ago. 

The water pond at Kīlauea's summit continues to gradually deepen. The pond surface remains variable in color, with a brownish hue in the northern portion, evident through the gaps in steam. USGS photo by D. Swanson.

The sampling mechanism (on blue tarp) is prepared and the Unoccupied Aircraft System (UAS) is inspected just before take off to collect water from the Halema‘uma‘u crater lake. Brightly colored flagging tape tied to a cable attached to the UAS indicated depth as the sampling tool was lowered into the water. 

Stormy weather moved through the islands over the past day, producing snow at the higher elevations of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. This sequence shows the webcam images at the summit of Mauna Loa, and the variable weather throughout the day.

On December 30, 2015, an HVO geologist wore protective gear during collection of a fresh lava sample for chemical analysis from a Pāhoehoe breakout along scattered Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō lava flows. Inset image caption: Metadata is written on a bag that holds a sample taken from Pāhoehoe that was collected on August 18, 2006.

Geophysicist Brian Shiro, manager of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory's seismic network, was part of HVO's team that installed several new stations on Kīlauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone to monitor earthquakes during the 2018 eruption.

Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) image of the silicified microbial mats that form Castle Geyser. USGS image by Dakota Churchill.

_{This Portulaca sclerocarpa (‘Ihi mākole) individual (center) surrounded by invasive grass species is a critically endangered plant. The small metal tag to the right notes the plant's permanent identification number for long-term monitoring purposes.}