Eruption at Kīlauea slows to apparent pause

The eruption of Kīlauea slowed significantly between 3 and 4 p.m. on Monday, and appears to have paused, according to a status update posted by the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. The eruption started just hours earlier at 2:20 a.m. on Dec. 23, 2024.

The eruption in Halema’uma’u crater within Kaluapele (Kīlauea summit caldera) continued through most of the day on Monday within a closed area of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. There was no immediate threat to human life or infrastructure, but emission rates of volcanic gases were very high.

Webcam imagery and field crew observations showed continued lava fountaining from vents in the southwest portion of the caldera with new lava covering approximately 650 acres, including all of Halema’uma’u and most of the adjacent down-dropped block.  

The area covered so far is a little more than 1 square mile (2.6 square kilometers) and represents about one quarter of the area of Kaluapele. The lava is estimated to be about 1 yard (1 meter) thick, giving an estimated average effusion rate of 110 cubic yards per second (85 cubic meters per second) for the first 8 hours of the eruption. Initial fountain heights were estimated to be about 260 to 300 feet (80-90 meters) and had decreased to about 55 yards (50 m) by 1 p.m.  

Vigorous fountaining produced a plume of volcanic gas and particles that was transported downwind, in a southwest direction over a closed area of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Conditions prevented measuring SO2 gas emission rates by normal methods, but nearby monitoring stations estimated over 100,000 tonnes of SO2 per day around 8 a.m.and  decreasing by half in the early afternoon. These estimates are similar to values measured in the early stages of previous summit eruptions in the past four years. 

Around 3 p.m. on Monday, tilt at the summit stopped showing deflation and seismic tremor began decreasing. By 3:30 p.m., lava fountains were barely visible. By 4 p.m., fountaining had stopped and seismic tremor was close to background levels, according to the HVO. Visible volcanic gas emissions have also decreased significantly. These observations indicate that the eruption has slowed significantly and appears to be entering a pause.  

HVO continues to closely monitor Kīlauea and will issue an eruption update tomorrow morning unless there are significant changes overnight.  HVO remains in close contact with Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park and the Hawai‘i County Civil Defense Agency. See the Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park website for visitor information: https://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm 

Kīlauea Volcano Alert Level/Aviation Color Code remain at WATCH/ORANGE. All current and recent activity is within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.

Kīlauea erupted most recently in and near Nāpau Crater on the middle East Rift Zone from Sept. 15-20, 2024. Since 1952, Kīlauea has erupted dozens of times. From 1983 to 2018 eruptive activity was nearly continuous along the volcano’s East Rift Zone, according to the HVO.