#usgs

A 253-year-old coral core from Olowalu Reef revealed that historic land-use changes, such as sugarcane expansion, led to increased sediment inputs and declining coral growth, providing critical long-term context to guide current watershed restoration efforts.

In July 2022, earthquakes at Taʻū volcano shook the remote Manuʻa Islands of American Samoa for 6 weeks as the volcano experienced volcanic unrest; fortunately for the communities of Taʻū Island and nearby Ofu-Olosega Islands (also a volcano), seismic unrest subsided and returned to background levels of activity in September 2022.

On Sunday, Sept. 13, 8 a.m. HST, a magnitude-4.0 earthquake occurred 2 miles south of Pāhala on the Island of Hawaiʻi at a depth of 8 miles below sea level. The earthquake had no apparent impact on either Maunaloa or Kīlauea volcanoes, according to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

Four steps that you can take to be better prepared for any disaster include: learning what hazards can affect you and when, making an emergency plan, building an emergency supply kit (go bag), and getting involved in your community.

In July, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists visited an exposure of tephra and lava flows in the western wall of Kaluapele. The layers were exposed by the 2018 summit collapse and hold important clues to Kīlauea’s long-term eruptive history.

Scientists with the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory say today’s (Aug. 17, 2026) magnitude-4.1 earthquake, located 10 miles south-southeast of Hōnaunau-Nāpōʻopoʻo on the Island of Hawaiʻi was likely an aftershock of the magnitude-6.0 that occurred on May 23, 2026.

Kīlauea’s summit eruption could produce another episode of lava fountaining as early as this weekend, while a new survey of Mauna Loa shows the neighboring volcano continues to slowly inflate, according to the US Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. The observatory reported that Kīlauea has been erupting episodically within its summit caldera since Dec. 23, […]

Coast Guard and Navy aircrews rescued seven people and one dog during flash floods on Oʻahu Friday. A larger rescue effort by multiple agencies resulted in the rescue of at least 196 people, according to an earlier report from the governor.

The summit region of Kīlauea experienced tephra fallout and a Kona low storm this past week. Cleanup, recovery, and regrowth is ongoing. These processes are natural and have been recognized and embodied in Native Hawaiian oral traditions about Pele, Lono, and Hiʻiaka.

A magnitude-4.2 earthquake reported at 11:37 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 26, occurred 1 mile northwest of Pāhala on the Island of Hawaiʻi at a depth of 21 miles below sea level. Scientists with the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory say the earthquake was part of the ongoing deep swarm beneath Pāhala that began about 7 years ago and is not directly related to volcanic activity.

The Hawaiʻi Department of Health urges residents and visitors to take precautions as elevated volcanic gas emissions from the recently paused Kīlauea eruption continue to produce vog (volcanic smog – hazy air pollution caused by the volcanic emissions) that can result in poor air quality across the islands.

US Sen. Mazie K. Hirono sent a letter to US Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum urging him to reconsider the Trump Administration’s decision to eliminate funding for the US Geological Survey’s Ecosystems Mission Area.

Episode 32 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption ended abruptly at around 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025 after more than 13 hours of continuous fountaining.  Lava fountains reached up to 500 ft during this episode and averaged more than 250 cubic yards per sec of lava, the highest output for a short-lived fountain episode. 

Volcano Watch is a weekly article and activity update written by US Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists and affiliates. Today’s article is written by RCUH geophysicist Maddie Hawk. 

The National Volcano Early Warning and Monitoring System aims to provide timely warnings and protect citizens from potential hazards associated with volcanic eruptions. 

In 2022, Hawaiʻi Island residents experienced an eruption from Maunaloa for the first time in nearly 40 years and they continue to see new eruptions from the summit of Kilauea. This program, first authorized in 2019, will help scientists at the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory to continue improving their volcano monitoring and warning capabilities through expanded infrastructure and modernized technology.

A magnitude-4.4 earthquake was reported at 5:25 p.m. on Friday, March 14, occurring 34 miles west of Hawaiian Ocean View Estates on the Island of Hawaiʻi at a depth of 22 miles below sea level. This earthquake was a common type related to readjustments of the ocean crust due to the weight of Hawaiʻi Island, […]

It was a dark and stormy night… and the volcano had a secret.

US Rep. Jill Tokuda and US Sen. Mazie K. Hirono have introduced legislation to fight the spread of Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death in Hawaiʻi.

The summit eruption at Kīlauea volcano that began on Dec. 23, 2024 has been paused since the evening of Jan. 3, 2025. Subsidence might suggest that the magma column feeding the eruption has withdrawn deeper, but continued glow from the northern eruptive vent last night indicates that lava remains close to the surface.