#mauna loa volcano

As future eruptive episodes approach, monitor the weather forecast and follow guidance from Hawai‘i County Civil Defense so you can prepare for these events if you live in an area that could experience tephra fallout.

Like the “Did You Feel It?” earthquake reporting tool helps make maps of areas affected by shaking, the new tool helps scientists map areas affected by tephra fallout; observations will be used to assess the character and size of the eruption plumes from Kīlauea volcano on the Big Island, along with the dispersal pattern of tephra fall.

Tsunami waves generated by distant earthquakes take hours to reach the Hawaiian Islands, giving people time to evacuate vulnerable areas. Local tsunami, however, do not need to travel far to reach our shores, leaving a much shorter time to respond.

Whether they originate above or below the Earth’s surface, a wide array of signals appear on the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory’s earthquake-detecting (seismic) data streams. Part of a seismic analyst’s duty is identifying normal versus irregular seismic activity. 

A lava pond has replaced the fountains of lava at Mauna Loa’s fissure 3 vent, as scientists report a reduced supply of lava and gas emissions Saturday morning.

Although the flow has slowed over flat land over the past several days, fissure 3 in the Northeast Rift Zone remains active with a continuous supply of lava. Hikers are also being warned to stay out of closed areas.

Around fissure 3, a cone is developing, measured as approximately 157 high. The HVO reports that the flow front was about 2.5 mi from the Daniel K. Inouye Highway and was advancing at a rate of 40 feet per hour at last report.

“The flows are reaching a relatively flat area and are beginning to slow down; as this happens, the lava flow will spread out and inflate. Forecasts indicate it may take two days for lava flows to reach the Daniel K. Inouye Highway (Saddle Road),” according to the HVO.

As lava continues to flow into the Northeast Rift zone from Mauna Loa’s summit caldera, the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife has closed additional recreation areas on the mountain. 

“We do not expect upper fissures to reactivate. However, additional fissures could open along the Northeast Rift Zone below the current location, and lava flows can continue to travel downslope,” the HVO advised.

“We do not expect upper fissures to reactivate. However, additional fissures could open along the Northeast Rift Zone below the current location, and lava flows can continue to travel downslope,” HVO scientists said.

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists are constantly using InSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) images and other tools to track the movement of magma within Hawaii’s volcanoes in order to identify the warning signs of impending eruptions. 

Hawai‘i County emergency managers and experts on volcano geology will hold the latest in a series of briefings to update the public on the situation this evening in Pāhala.

The current unrest is most likely being driven by renewed input of magma 2–5 miles (3–8 km) beneath Mauna Loa’s summit. Monitoring data show no significant changes in the past day, according to the HVO.

A noticeable seismic swarm occurred from late January through mid-April 2021 and was accompanied by changes by ground surface tilt recorded by a summit tiltmeter. This was an unprecedented observation that indicated magma had been getting closer to the surface. Another short swarm and tilt event was observed in early August 2022. 

An estimated 38 small earthquakes have occurred beneath the summit of Mauna Loa volcano since 2 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022. The US Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports that the quakes are part of a small seismic swarm beneath the summit caldera region.

The original purpose of geologic mapping in Hawaiʻi was to understand the distribution of groundwater and soils to support agriculture. But as geologic maps have been developed over time, they’ve provided basic information on how the Hawaiian Islands evolved, the workings of individual volcanoes, and the relative degree of long-term hazards posed.

Gravimeters, essentially extremely precise pendulums, can measure a change in the force of gravity to one-in-one billionth of the force you feel every day. This force varies based on the distance and the amount of mass between the instrument (or you) and the center of the Earth.

Pele returned to the summit of Kīlauea on the evening of Dec. 20, 2020. Incredible video documents the start of the new eruption in Halema‘uma‘u and the dynamic ongoing activity. There was no significant change that suggested lava would erupt again so rapidly, but there were subtle signs of restless behavior around Kīlauea’s summit in the months prior to the eruption.

“When will Mauna Loa erupt next?” This was the title of a Volcano Awareness Month video presentation released by the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory in January 2021. This was also the topic of discussion among HVO scientists last week following the detection of slight changes in ground deformation and seismicity at the summit of Mauna Loa.