Images

Clear Lake Volcanic Field, California. Tuff deposit outcrop.

After collecting a sample from the well using the narrow sampler shown, HVO staff transfer the water sample into a container. The water is collected periodically for chemical analyses so that changes in the water composition can be tracked. For more information about the Keller Well, please see HVO's Dec.

The communications hub at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō is precariously perched on the north rim, which is actively collapsing. This hub, and the PN cam behind the hub (to the left of image) will ultimately fall into the crater as the north rim continues to collapse.

On Tuesday, December 10 HVO staff visited Keller Well, a deep borehole at the summit of Kīlauea, to take quarterly measurements and samples. This photo shows an extra long measuring tape, which has a sensor attached to the end, being lowered into the well to measure the distance to the top of the water table.

The "Short-term Sulfur Dioxide Advisory Level Information" table (http://www.hiso2index.info/assets/FinalSO₂Exposurelevels.pdf) uses a six-tiered color-coded system to depict sulfur dioxide (SO₂) concentrations and provide guidance for different groups of people exposed to SO₂

Angel Terrace, Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park. Travertine deposits are abundant in the area. Photo by JoAnn Holloway, 2003.

Water collected from the lake at the bottom of Halema‘uma‘u is prepared for laboratory analyses at the USGS California Volcano Observatory. Results thus far reveal chemistry indicative of complex reactions between the water, magmatic gases, and Kīlauea's basaltic rocks.

USGS-HVO scientists and DOI UAS team members collect samples of water from the Halema‘uma‘u crater lake. 

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and DOI Office of Aviation staff prepare the sampling mechanism (on blue tarp) and inspect the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) just before it took off to collect water from the Halema‘uma‘u crater lake.

On November 15, 2019, USGS HVO field engineers rapidly deployed a new data-telemetry hub near Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. A crack near an important telemetry hub at near the summit of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō was observed to be growing over the past several weeks and HVO field engineers prepared a contingency telemetry hub to install nearby if necessary.

_{Sulphur Cone (left), viewed toward southwest, from 3,480 m (11,420 ft) above sea level on Mauna Loa’s southwest rift zone. At right, an HVO geoscientist and technician rebuild volcanic gas monitoring equipment installed near an outgassing fissure.}
 

USGS scientists measured gases in an area uprift of the 2018 fissure system on November 8. In this area, vegetation has died because of lingering heat and steam. In some areas of Kīlauea's lower East Rift Zone, residents report smelling gases that are likely generated by decaying organic matter rather than magma degassing. USGS image by P. Nadeau.

On November 8, 2019, USGS volcano scientists visited Kīlauea's Lower East Rift Zone to measure ambient gases, as well as the soil carbon dioxide (CO2) flux and temperature. This photo, looking in a southeast direction, shows some steaming uprift of the 2018 fissure system.

In Kīlauea's lower East Rift Zone, a closed chamber was used to measure the rate of CO2 emitted directly from the ground near a crack emitting steam. USGS scientists continue to track changes in Kīlauea's lower East Rift Zone after last year's eruption. USGS image by P. Nadeau.

USGS scientists collect gas from the Puhimau thermal area on Chain of Craters Road in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. The gas is collected in evacuated (vacuum-pumped so that no gas at all is inside) glass bottles, and a system of a syringe with tubing helped ensure minimal contamination by ambient atmospheric gases.

USGS scientists collect gas from the Puhimau thermal area on Chain of Craters Road in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. The gas is collected in evacuated (vacuum-pumped so that no gas at all is inside) glass bottles, and a system of a syringe with tubing helped ensure minimal contamination by ambient atmospheric gases.

Puhimau thermal area has the largest naturally occurring population of the endangered plant, Portulaca sclerocarpa (marked by the blue flag in the photo), and is the site of National Park Service restoration efforts for this species.

Geophysicist Sarah Conway, a member of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory's deformation team, readies a temporary GPS station during a campaign survey of benchmarks on Kīlauea Volcano to monitor changes in the ground surface. 

The Field trip guide to Mount St. Helens, Washington—Recent and ancient volcaniclastic processes and deposits is available in the USGS Publications Warehouse, at https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20175022E.

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and DOI Office of Aviation staff prepare the sampling mechanism (on blue tarp) and inspect the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) just before it took 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.

Water collected from the lake at the bottom of Halema‘uma‘u is prepared for laboratory analyses at the USGS California Volcano Observatory. Results thus far reveal chemistry indicative of complex reactions between the water, magmatic gases, and Kīlauea's basaltic rocks. USGS photo by S. Peek, October 2019.