Images

Aerial view of Kīlauea Volcano's summit caldera and an ash plume billowing from Halema‘uma‘u, a crater within the caldera.

USGS scientist in the Lower East Rift Zone documenting the spectacular ~50 m tall fissure 7 lava fountain to the east which had lit up the sky in a red hue.

U.S. Geological Survey Volcanologist Matthew Patrick photographs and observes a lava fountain in the Leilani Estates near Hilo, Hawai`i on Sunday, May 27, 2018. 

 

Pāhoehoe lava advancing west from fissure 7 (lava fountain in background) on Leilani Avenue. Fissure 7 activity increased overnig

Aerial view of the eastern-most end of the fissure complex (top right) and active lava channels and inactive flows south of the fissures (toward left side of photo) at about 12:30 p.m. HST; the ocean is out of view left side of photo. In this view, fissure 22 in top right is supplying most of the lava to the active channel.

Ash rises above Halema‘uma‘u within Kīlauea's summit caldera in this May 27, 2018, telephoto image from near Volcano House Hotel in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

This ‘a‘ā flow, erupted from fissures 7 and 21, was approximately 3–4 meters (yards) high at the flow front and slowly advancing to the northeast in the Leilani Estates subdivision around 10:30 a.m. HST today.

An aerial view, looking west, of the two active ocean entries on Kīlauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone. The large white plume (foreground) is the eastern ocean entry; the weaker, western plume can be seen in the distance.

Aerial view of the active ocean entries at Kīlauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone captured during this morning's HVO overflight. An ongoing hazard at the ocean entries is laze.

Activity at fissure 6 this morning (May 25, 2018). Lava fountains have built a small spatter cone (black mound) from which lava was spilling out onto the surface and flowing into a small po

Fissures 6 (left) and 13 (right), with lava flows merging into one channel that flows into the ocean at the western-most entry. Note plume in distance at the ocean entries (top left). Photo is from an overflight at mid day.

Map as of 2:00 p.m. HST, May 25. Shaded purple areas indicate lava flows erupted in 1840, 1955, 1960, and 2014-2015.

Poor weather at the summit of Kīlauea has obscured views of Halema‘uma‘u for much of today, but a brief break in the weather around noon allowed HVO's webcam to capture this image of an ash plume rising from the crater at 12:17 p.m. HST.

During HVO's overflight this morning, the fissure 22 fountain was not as high as several days ago, but was still erupting significant lava.

Fissure 6 fountain, as of around 9:30 a.m. HST today. 

Map as of 2:20 p.m. HST, May 24. Shaded purple areas indicate lava flows erupted in 1840, 1955, 1960, and 2014-2015.

Blue arrows indicate contraction across the upper and middle rift zone as magma withdrew from this area and moved down the rift zone beginning on April 30, 2018. Black arrows indicate expansion across the rift zone as magma intruded into the LERZ; the area stopped widening on about May 18.

View of a rising ash plume from Halema‘uma‘u, a crater at the summit of Kīlauea, late yesterday (May 24, 2018), as seen from the caldera rim near Volcano House.

Poor weather at the summit of Kīlauea has obscured views of Halema‘uma‘u for much of today, but a brief break in the weather around noon allowed HVO's webcam to capture this image of an ash plume rising from the crater at 12:17 p.m. HST.

During today's overflight of the ongoing lower East Rift Zone eruption, HVO geologists noted that fissures 6, 13 and 22 were still erupting, with two channelized flows reaching the ocean.

This video was filmed on May 21, 2018, with a UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle). Limited UAV flights above the hazardous Kīlauea summit area, which is currently too dangerous for geologists to enter for ground observations, are conducted with permission from the National Park Service.