Unified Interior Regions
Hawaii
States L2 Landing Page Tabs
Slow moving lava
Lava slowly rafts plate of crust downstream. Width of plate of crust, about 1 m.
Sheet of lava pouring from inflating flow
Sheet of lava pouring from inflating flow. Note wrinkling, moving crust.
Lava pouring from inflating flow
Same sheet of lava pouring from inflating flow but seen from different angle.
Single toe in action
Single toe in action. Note concentric wrinkes forming at bottom of view.
Low-angle view of fluid toe spreading out
Low-angle view of fluid toe spreading out. Note moving dark crust on distant part of toe.
Rapidly flowing single toe of lava
Rapidly flowing single toe of lava at front of flow 440 m seaward of Paliuli. Other videos on this day focus on similar toes. Sound was turned off during the imaging. For scale, flowing lava in all clips is 1-3 m wide.
Channeled cascade on Paliuli
Channeled cascade on Paliuli. Other videos on this day focus on front of this cascade. Wind noise in this and other clips is obvious, but listen for sounds of pieces of crust scraping against one another or across ground. For scale, flow front in all clips is 1-1.5 m high.
Fluid lava leaks from inside crusted front of cascade
Fluid lava leaks from inside crusted front of cascade.
Breaking and tumbling crust on slabby flow front.
Breaking and tumbling crust on slabby flow front.
Hawaiian Coot (Fulica alai)
Hawaiian Coot swimming in a wetland marsh. Listed as an endangered species in 1970. Dark gray with a white bill and frontal shield that varies from white, pale buff, and pale blue to deep red.
The billowing steam plumes rising from where lava enters the ocean are an indication that Kīlauea's eruption may be returning to normal, after several months of unsettled behavior.
Lave Continues to Enter Sea
"A curtain of fire extended far down the rift zone. Fire fountains played to great heights. Burning embers fell to the ground. Smoke drifted downwind from the fountains of fire. Rivers of fire flowed downslope."
For over a decade, we have watched lava flows from Kīlauea overrun nearly 40 square miles of land, destroying precious forests, communities, and sacred ground. At other times, major earthquakes have generated damage over considerable parts of the island of Hawaii and, in the cases of the 1871 and 1938 earthquakes, even other islands.
Rift zones, which form during the shield-building stage of development, are prominent features of Hawaiian volcanoes. They are typically long, linear features whose formation and orientation are influenced by gravity and the pressures imparted by adjacent volcanoes. Most Hawaiian volcanoes have at least two major rift zones. These rift zones extend all the way down to the ocean floor.
Kilauea Eruption Continues!
One of the most highly watched events recently on television occurred on the Fourth of July when the U.S. Mars Pathfinder mission successfully transmitted images from the red planet back to Earth. The panorama of the Martian landing site had a striking semblance to the boulder-strewn field south of Halema`uma`u crater.
An earthquake shook the entire Island of Hawai‘i at about 3:54 p.m. this afternoon.
Kilauea Eruption Continues!
Pele continued her march to the sea in the two months since our last eruption update through Volcano Watch. Lava reached the ocean on July 12 and occasionally since then. Also, lava flows were emplaced north and west of Royal Gardens but are not presently threatening any residential areas.
The English missionary, Rev. William Ellis, visited the summit region of Kīlauea 174 years ago this week and made the first written description of eruptive activity at the volcano. His foot party departed Kailua on July 18, 1823, eventually reaching Kapapala on July 30.
The North Kona Coast of the Big Island is fortunate to have several Hawaiian fishponds preserved. These ponds were major construction feats by which Hawaiians cultivated fish.
Social Media
Locations
Pacific Island Ecosystems Research Center
Phone: (808) 985-6420
Fax: (808) 967-8568
Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center
Pacific Islands Water Science Center
Phone: 808-690-9600
Fax: 808-690-9599
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
askHVO@usgs.gov
Phone: (808) 967-7328
Fax: (808) 967-8890
O'ahu Field Station
Phone: 808-690-9571
Fax: 808-690-9599
National Wildlife Health Center, Honolulu Field Station
Phone: (808) 792-9520
Fax: (808) 792-9596