Update: Eruption at Kīlauea enters Episode 7 with 100-foot lava fountains; pauses after 16 hours

Update: 12:30 p.m., Jan. 28, 2025

Episode 7 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption ended abruptly at 10:47 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025.

The southern vent stopped erupting just after 10:43 a.m. followed shutdown of the north vent at 10:47 a.m.  Lava flows from this episode covered more than half of the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu within the southern part of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera). 

Deflationary tilt at the summit recorded about 7 microradians during episode 7, more than twice that recorded during episodes 5 and 6.  The end of the episode was coincident with a rapid change from deflation to inflation at the summit and a decrease in seismic tremor intensity, according to the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.

Each episode of Halemaʻumaʻu lava fountaining since Dec. 23, 2024, has continued for 13 hours to 8 days and episodes have been separated by pauses in eruptive activity lasting less than 24 hours to 12 days.

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Episode 7 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption at Kīlauea began at 6:41 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 27 and is currently feeding a lava flow onto the crater floor.

The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports: “Episode 7 was preceded by small, sporadic spatter fountains that began at approximately 1:30 p.m. and continued to increase in intensity until 6:41 p.m., when sustained fountaining began. Fountains from the north vent are 100-120 feet (30-40 meters) high and feeding multiple lava streams at 7:40 p.m. The flow had covered 15-20% of the crater floor this time. A small fountain can be seen in the south vent and there is a small lava flow emerging from the south side of its cone at 7:35 p.m. on webcams.”

No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.

Each episode of lava fountaining since Dec. 23, 2024, has continued for 13 hours to 8 days and episodes have been separated by pauses in eruptive activity lasting a less than 24 hours to 12 days. Based on the durations of episodes 5 and 6 and the short pauses that separated them, episode 7 will probably last 10-20 hours.

Kīlauea Volcano Alert Level/Aviation Color Code remain at WATCH/ORANGE. All current and recent activity is within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.