Images

Aerial image taken at approximately 9 a.m. HST on March 10 during an overflight of Halema‘uma‘u crater at Kīlauea summit. The wind blew steam east, which allowed Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists to take a closer look at the features of the western end of the crater floor. This low-angle view was taken from the western end of the crater and looks east.

Aerial image of Halema‘uma‘u crater floor looking north and showing the architecture of the eastern part of the crater floor dominated by the eastern pond basin. The island from the December 2020 eruption can be seen rising in the western (left) side of the photo with the eastern vent area slightly to the east of the island.

View of Halema‘uma‘u crater floor looking south and showing the island that formed during the December 2020 eruption (foreground) and crater floor (background). The December 2020 island has a thin surface of glassy spatter and tephra from the more recent Halema‘uma‘u eruptions that started in September 2021 and January 2023.

A helicopter overflight on March 10, 2023, allowed for aerial visual and thermal imagery to be collected of Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. No active lava was present in the crater, with only scattered warm spots on the crater floor.

On March 10, 2023, geologists from the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory visited the main island that was created during the first hours of the December 2020 eruption.

A low-angle aerial view showing the steep walls of the western basin within Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. In the background, a Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologist is working on the island that formed in the December 2020 eruption. USGS photo by J. Schmith.

This photograph shows darker-colored spatter from September 2021 and January 2023 eruptions in Halema‘uma‘u covering the lighter-colored tephra from the December 2020 eruption that makes up the bulk of the island in the middle of Halema‘uma‘u crater floor. USGS photo by D. Downs. 

The top panel is from before the 2018 Kīlauea eruption and shows two steps corresponding to slow slip events (SSEs).  The bottom panel is from after 2018 and shows no evidence of step-like motion indicative of SSEs, although the slight curve does suggest that a post-eruption increase in seaward motion is slowly returning to background.  The inset

Lava lake activity within Halema‘uma‘u crater, at the summit of Kīlauea, continues. On February 14, low fountaining was present at the central vent, which was supplying lava into a channel that flowed towards the large eastern lake. USGS image by M. Patrick.

During a Kīlauea summit eruption field shift on February 15, 2023, HVO geologists were able to briefly glimpse the active lava on Halema‘uma‘u crater floor between shifting mist and rain. The lava pond in the central portion of the crater floor has a small lava fountain, near which a rampart that is nearly 8 meters (26 feet) tall has formed.

A Koa‘e kea (white-tailed tropic bird) was flying through the mist and steam within Halema‘uma‘u crater the morning of February 15, 2023. These birds are frequently seen flying around the crater, at the summit of Kīlauea. USGS image by K. Mulliken.

Low fountaining continues in the eastern lake, in Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. Several small islands of solidified lava are present in the lake. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

The western lake within Halema‘uma‘u crater, at the summit of Kīlauea, remains active but sluggish. Since the eruption began in early January, the main focus of activity has been at the eastern and central lakes. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

On February 14, 2023, low fountaining was also present at the central vent in Halema‘uma‘u, at the summit of Kīlauea. Lava upwelling at this vent then flowed eastward through a channel towards the larger, eastern lake. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

The eruption in Halema‘uma‘u, at the summit of Kīlauea, continues. Over the past week, the main source of lava effusion has shifted from the large eastern lake (right side of image) towards the smaller lake in the center of the crater (left side of image). This central vent has supplied lava towards the east that has poured into the eastern lake basin.

A close up of the small lava fountain at the central vent in Halema‘uma‘u, at the summit of Kīlauea. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

Proposed MT station (squares) color-coded with some land ownership information. The area to be covered by the airborne survey is also outlined to cover most of Kīlauea volcano.

This reference map depicts the Kīlauea summit eruption on February 3, 2023. Recent HVO helicopter overflights have been unable to produce accurate structure-from-motion models of the Halema‘uma‘u crater floor due to the thick volcanic gas plume; for this reason, no updated statistics can be provided for the average crater floor elevation or the erupted lava volume.

A helicopter overflight on February 2, 2023, allowed for aerial visual and thermal imagery to be collected of Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. The largest lava lake is located in the eastern portion of the crater, though lava has also filled the areas previously active in the western portion of the crater.

During a Kīlauea summit morning monitoring overflight on February 2, 2023, HVO scientists documented activity in the ongoing Halema‘uma‘u eruption, shown in this photo looking to the SW at 7:30 a.m. HST. Mauna Loa is visible in the background. USGS image by K. Lynn

View of the ongoing eruption at Kīlauea's summit around 7:30 a.m. HST on February 2, 2023, looking to the south/southeast. Lava lake activity continues, and a large overflow from the central pond was active during the morning overflight. USGS image by K. Lynn.