Images

A USGS geologist surveys the height of the new tephra cone formed by the recent lava fountaining episodes at the summit of Kīlauea. This tephra cone now towers over, and covers, Crater Rim Drive, which has been closed to the public since 2008.

The appearance of layers in the fountains represents discrete pulses at the base of the fountain, highlighting the dynamic nature of lava exiting the vent. The fountain supplied lava into channels that flowed north along the edge of the crater floor, into the eastern crater. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

Episode 26 lava fountaining at the summit of Kīlauea. The episode was dominated by fountaining from the north vent, and reached over 350 m (1150 feet). USGS photo. 

A USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist collects video and makes observations of lava fountain behavior on the western caldera rim during the morning on June 20. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

A view of the complex flow of lava exiting the north vent crater at Kīlauea summit during episode 26 of the ongoing eruption. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

Episode 26 of lava fountaining during the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption began just after midnight, on June 20, and reached heights of over 300 meters (1000 feet).

Tephra deposits from the recent lava fountaining at Kīlauea summit have blanketed the western caldera rim, killing much of the vegetation in this area. Nevertheless, some plants are starting to sprout up again through the cinder.

Cycles of gas pistoning were observed in the north vent, at Kīlauea summit, by USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists looking down upon the vent from the caldera rim on June 18. The peak of each cycle produced loud jetting sounds and a brief glimpse of spatter, but the lava column was not visible and no lava flows were produced. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

Lava fountaining remained paused on Wednesday, June 18, nearly a week after episode 25 produced impressive lava fountains at Kīlauea summit. HVO geologists on the rim observed cycles of gas-pistoning in the north vent, associated with a small amount of visible spatter and loud jetting sounds. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

A view of the thick deposit of tephra from the high fountaining of episode 25—along with accumulation from previous episodes—of the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption, which blankets the crater rim southwestern rim of Halema‘uma‘u.

Photo of a partially melted bucket with an embedded tephra clast erupted during episode 25 of the ongoing eruption at Kīlauea. Buckets are used to collect tephra, and emptied between episodes, to ensure that samples from each episode are isolated to track geochemical changes and determine the amount of tephra that fell at each site.

The photo provides a view from near the top of the tephra deposit that accumulated during recent episodes of the ongoing eruption at Kīlauea volcano, looking west towards Kīlauea's upper Southwest Rift Zone. The brown material covering and filling in topographic lows on the landscape erupted since the eruption started on December 23, 2024.

This reference map depicts the Kīlauea summit eruption within Halema‘uma‘u crater that began on December 23, 2024. As of this posting on June 13, the eruption continues episodically.

Aerial images comparing the tephra deposit southwest of Halemaʻumaʻu crater (left) from the ongoing eruption at Kīlauea summit. The top image, taken on December 27, 2024, during episode 3, shows a thin layer of tephra (brown) has already accumulated on the left side of the image.

A benchmark on the northwest side of Mauna Loa's summit being surveyed by GPS campaign instruments. The metal disk on the ground beneath the tripod is the benchmark, which is cemented to the lava flow surface so that the specific spot can be measured each year. Mauna Kea is visible in the background. USGS photo by A. Ellis.

Another GPS survey benchmark being occupied on Mauna Loa's lower southwest flank. USGS photo by A. Ellis.

A GPS benchmark on west side of Mauna Loa's summit being measured with campaign GPS equipment during the annual Mauna Loa GPS campaign survey. Hualālai is visible in the background. USGS photo by A. Ellis.
 

A cropped comparison of two USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory webcam images showing changes to the landscape of Kīlauea summit region over the past six months. Twenty-five episodes of lava fountaining within Halemaʻumaʻu have contributed to a growing deposit of tephra material in the closed area of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, southwest of the vents. 

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory staff are conducting the annual Mauna Loa GPS campaign. During the survey, GPS instruments are deployed at established benchmarks so that their recorded positions can be compared with those from previous years to discern small changes in ground deformation associated with volcanic activity.

The ongoing Halema‘uma‘u Kīlauea summit eruption continued today with episode 25, which began at 11:57 am HST. Fountains from the north vent reached approximately 1000 feet (305 m) while south vent fountains were continuously less than 165 feet (50 m).

Wednesday June 11 is Kamehameha Day in Hawaii, and many island residents took advantage of the state holiday to visit Kīlauea and watch episode 25 of the ongoing summit eruption in Halemaʻumaʻu. The back lawn of Volcano House has been popular observation post, with expansive views of Kaluapele (the summit caldera) and the lava fountain in the distance.