Images

Some of the new cracks that formed on Kīlauea caldera floor between September 30-October 1 were steaming and warm (about 60 dg Celsius, or 140 dg Fahrenheit) when they were measured by this thermal camera on October 6.

Telephoto view of the northern part of Kīlauea's upper caldera floor the Uēkahuna overlook. While some of the ground cracking in this area occurred during the 2018 caldera collapse, there is evidence of new ground cracking associated with the dike intrusion that occurred during the night of September 30 to October 1.

Photograph from the Uēkahuna overlook in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park looking at the northern part of Kīlauea's upper caldera floor. This is the area where increased seismicity and ground deformation occurred during the night of September 30 to October 1.

The largest new crack observed on the northern part of Kīlauea caldera floor during a field visit on October 6, 2026, was measured at 15 cm (6 inches) wide. The sharp edge of the tephra deposit above the crack, as well as delicate suspended roots that were pulled apart in the crack, help indicate that this is a new crack and not an older, existing one.

Another view of the new ground cracks in the north part of Kaluapele, Kīlauea summit caldera, cutting through the recent tephra deposits on the caldera floor. New cracks were up to about 6 inches (15 cm) wide. The active vents of the ongoing eruption are visible in the upper right portion of the photo. USGS photo by M. Patrick.

The September 30-October 1 intrusion of magma into the northern portion of Kaluapele, Kīlauea summit caldera, created scattered ground cracks on the surface.

Aerial view of the northern part of the crater floor of Halemaʻumaʻu at the summit of Kīlauea taken during a USGS monitoring overflight on the morning of October 1, 2026. Black rubbly ʻaʻā and smooth gray pāhoehoe lava flows are visible emanating from the vent complex that is visible the left background of the photo. USGS photo by D. Downs.

Following the seismic swarm and tilt excursion associated with an intrusion over the night of September 30 to October 1, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory staff undertook a helicopter overflight to assess any changes on the upper caldera floor of Kaluapele and the crater floor of Halemaʻumaʻu.

Aerial view of the north (bottom of the photo), south (upper left), and west (obscured by south vent plume) vents in Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea on the morning of October 1, 2026. All three vents were strongly glowing during the overflight, although glow from the west vent is obscured in this view.

Aerial view of the north (bottom right of the photo), south (left side), and west (upper middle) vents in Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea on the morning of October 1, 2026. All three vents were strongly glowing during the overflight, with lava seen at about 100 ft (30 m) down in the vent conduit. USGS photo by D. Downs.

This reference map depicts new vents and lava flows that erupted within Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea from September 14–16, 2026. Most of the data for this map were collected during a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory helicopter overflight on the morning of September 17, by which point eruptive activity had paused.

During a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitoring overflight of Kīlauea summit the afternoon of September 18, 2026, geologists captured this view showing several of the vents degassing.

The north vent in Halemaʻumaʻu, at the summit of Kīlauea, was incandescent during a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitoring overflight the afternoon of September 18, 2026. The south (upper left part of image) and west vents (upper center part of image) were degassing, and only a very minor area of incandescence was visible in the south vent. USGS photo by K.

Glow and flames were observed in Kīlauea summit webcam imagery overnight, with occasional spatter, but only incandescence was visible within the vent during a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitoring overflight the afternoon of September 18, 2026. USGS photo by K. Lynn. 

The shiny grey lava flow in the foreground of this photograph was erupted between September 14-16, 2026, by one of several new vents that opened in and along the northwest wall of Halemaʻumaʻu crater at the summit of Kīlauea.

This low-angle aerial view, taken during a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory monitoring overflight of Kīlauea summit on September 18, 2026, shows two of the six vents that erupted between September 14-16, 2026.

With permission from Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists collected a sample of lava that erupted from new vents in Halemaʻumaʻu between September 14-16, 2026. This photograph gives a sense of scale between the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu crater and the upper floor of Kaluapele (the summit caldera).

Four months of data from tiltmeter UWD at Kīlauea’s summit. Deflationary periods are particularly visible before fountaining episodes 51-54. The tiltmeter record is rotated to an azimuth of 300 degrees, such that upward deflections are consistent with inflation of the summit magma chamber and downward deflections are consistent with deflation.

During the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight on September 16, geologists captured this view of Kīlauea Iki (erupted in 1959) in the center, with Maunaulu lava shield (erupted from 1969–1974) on the skyline on the right. USGS photo by N. Deligne.

Aerial photo from the east looking west of two currently inactive fissures on the wall of Halema‘uma‘u, located to the north (left out of view) of the main vent complex. The fissure on the left has a circular appearance and initiated shortly before 9 p.m. H.S.T. on September 15.

Oblique aerial view to the north of the lava flows (silvery appearance) that have erupted from the new fissures at the summit of Kīlauea volcano within Halema‘uma‘u. This photo was taken on a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory overflight the morning of September 16.