Lava seen soaring from Kilauea's latest eruption
HONOLULU, Hawaii – The eruption of one of the world's most active volcanoes continued on Wednesday with the U.S. Geological Survey reporting that lava reached as high as 1,000 feet in the air on Hawaii's Big Island.
The USGS said a build-up of intermittent gas led to the twenty-fifth episode located along one of the mountain's northern vents.
Cameras focused on the shield volcano showed a speculator stream of lava shooting out of the eruption site, with all activity safely confined within the boundaries of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
The agency noted that no other significant changes in terrain or seismic activity were observed along Kīlauea's East or Southwest Rift Zones, which are areas of concern due to their closer proximity to infrastructure outside of the park.
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The latest episode is part of a broader series of events that have occurred around Halemaʻumaʻu crater since late 2024.
"Episode 25 was preceded by intermittent gas-pistoning in the north vent, with associated small spatter fountains and lava flows which began before dawn on June 10. This activity, which occurred at a rate of about 5-10 gas piston events per hour, continued to increase in intensity until 11:57 a.m. on June 11, when a small sustained dome fountain began to feed lava flows onto the crater floor. As of 12:30 p.m. HST, fountains from the north vent are reaching about 165 feet (50 meters) high and feeding multiple lava streams. Fountains heights are likely to increase in the coming hours," the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said in a statement.
Volcanologists say any one particular event has typically lasted less than a day, followed by an extended period of relative calm.
The last significant episode ended just last week with lava fountains reportedly reaching heights of up to 1,000 feet.
Hazards associated with the eruptive episodes include the release of toxic volcanic gasses and strands of volcanic glass known as Pele's hair; however, all potential impacts were expected to remain in and around the national park site.
Experts said rockfalls can also be enhanced in the immediate region, but the area surrounding the Halemaʻumaʻu crater has been closed to the public since 2007.
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The active shield volcano has been continuously erupting since 1983 and is among the most active in the world.
In 2018, an eruption destroyed hundreds of buildings and forced the evacuation of thousands of residents, as a series of explosive fissure eruptions occurred.Original article source: Lava seen soaring from Kilauea's latest eruption
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