Tag: jessica ball

June 14: The Face of Pele

Let me pause my science-blogging for a moment and direct your attention to a very special visitor in yesterday’s Tropical Visions overflight video.

About timestamp 0:30 in June 13 overflight video, Madame Pele’s profile appears in the partly-cooled lava. Mahalo to Tutu Pele, to Mick Kalber for his tireless aerial videography, and to my mother for pointing her out to me. [Although it sounds like Mick took the day off, and I should thank Mick’s co-photographer lavajavadude.]
Respect.

Now, how do I transition from that back to the science side of Kilauea?

Today’s Eruption Summary

Last night and today, Fissure 8’s fountains have rebounded to 200 feet, but the cinder/spatter cone they’ve built is so tall they’re just peeking out:

USGS: “The Fissure 8 viewed from the north at 7:50 AM. The cone is roughly 50 m (165 ft) high at is peak, and a plume of sulfur dioxide and other volcanic gases rises as an orange tinge from the erupting lava fountains (hidden within the cone). Lava is still flowing out of the vent unabated as a full channel. To the left of the cone, a standing wave of lava can be seen in the channel.” (Full-sized)

Fissures 16 and 17 continue to “ooze,” to borrow the USGS’ technical term.

Fissure 8’s lava river remains fast, wide and healthy. It stays incandescent red rather than skimmed over for many miles, which shows just how hot and voluminous it is (26,000 gallons/second). It’s entering the ocean along a dramatically broad front (second half of video clip):

Today’s summit explosion (energy equivalent of M5.3, like clockwork) occurred at 3:19am HST, with an ash plume to 6,000 feet. Again, there were lots of earthquakes in the hours leading up to it, then they dropped off, and now they’re ramping back up to the next explosion. This pattern must be getting pretty old for the nearby residents of Volcano.

After the cut:

USGS info on the ongoing eruption, timelapses of recent changes at the summit, Kilauea-related news, and more stunning photos.

Continue reading June 14: The Face of Pele

June 13: Towering Laze, Big Hole in the Ground

Today’s eruption summary:

Lower East Rift Zone: Fissure 8 continues to build its oblong cinder and spatter cone. Overnight fountain heights were 130-140 ft, up to 53m (174ft) by the afternoon. Fissures 16 and 18 continue weak activity.

USGS: “Fissure 8 fountains to heights of 130-140 ft. The lava spatter chills and the fragments are building a cone on the downwind side, now nearly as tall as the fountain itself.” (Full-sized)

Fissure 8’s lava flow had a “towering” steam plume at its ocean entry point this morning. Areas of offshore upwelling have become more dispersed.

6AM overflight of Kapoho, “towering” laze plume at ocean entry of Fissure 8 lava flow. (Full-sized)

The daily summit explosion was at 3:39am, equivalent to M5.4 earthquake, with an ash plume 7-8K feet (NWS radar has been repaired). Slumping and subsidence continue at Halema’uma’u, and SO2 emissions remain about half pre-event levels.

Before and After: Changes at Halema’uma’u

Here’s a good view of Halema’uma’u taken at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, April 19, 2018 by Christoph Strässler (Creative Commons):

Gorgeous photo of Halema’uma’u Crater and its lava lake, April 19, 2018 by Christoph Strässler (Creative Commons). See his photo album for more images from this visit.

Compare with this animation from HVO webcam June 1-10, or the new drone footage later in this post.

USGS: “A series of wide-angle webcam images, captured by a camera in HVO’s observation tower between June 1 and June 10, 2018, show ongoing subsidence around Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea in this animated GIF.” (Full-sized)

Today’s Kilauea news daily digest is full of science, science, science! the usual slew of incredible pictures. Also, some glimmers of hope for lava evacuees, although as usual bureaucracy moves at the speed of of dirt.

Continue reading June 13: Towering Laze, Big Hole in the Ground

June 12: Halema’uma’u’s Collapse Continues

Summit:  Today’s “Type A” explosion occurred at 1:52am. It produced almost no ash this time, although there’s still light ash and SO2 coming out of the crater from time to time. The view of the continued slumping/subsidence of Halema’uma’u crater is impressive (also see Jun 9 video on Twitter):

USGS: “Events at the summit of Kīlauea over the past few weeks have dramatically reshaped Halema‘uma‘u, shown here in this aerial view, which looks west across the crater. The obvious flat surface (photo center) is the former Halema‘uma‘u crater floor, which has subsided at least 100 m (about 300 ft) during the past couple weeks. Ground cracks circumferential to the crater rim can be seen cutting across the parking lot (left) for the former Halema‘uma‘u visitor overlook (closed since 2008). The deepest part of Halema‘uma‘u (foreground) is now about 300 m (1,000 ft) below the crater rim. The Halema‘uma‘u crater rim and walls continue to slump inward and downward with ongoing subsidence at Kīlauea’s summit.” (Full-sized)

Fissure 8’s cluster of vents is erupting up to 160ft today. With the cinder cone that’s built up around them, they’re mostly hidden. It’s entering the ocean today along a broad front. Fissure 16/18 are spattering weakly; this is the “weak activity” reported for the past few days. Apart from that, the Lower East Rift Zone is quiet, although other fissures are still releasing gasses.

The good news is, Fissure 8’s lava flow has built up such high, broad banks that unless it overflows them, it probably won’t cover many more homes or cut off new areas. The bad news is, the lava river could still break its levees, and there’s no guarantee other fissures won’t reactivate. USGS field crews reported a “non-erupting crack” in the Lower East Rift Zone with “temperatures as high as 430°C (806°F).”

Note, however, high temps may not indicate imminent changes. USGS clarified on Facebook: “This was at Fissure 10, which has long displayed high temperatures (fortunately, no SO2 was detected). It does not mean an eruption there is imminent, but rather it is a place where various superheated gases are escaping.” Similarly, there’s been high temps at the cracks across Highway 130, which have steamed but so far not erupted at all.

USGS overflight photo, morning of June 12. Fissure 8 and Leilani Estates. I think that’s Nohea Street. (Full-sized)

Somewhat abbreviated Daily Digest today because I started late, and then took forever transcribing 11AM conference call. But the stunning pictures keep coming…

Continue reading June 12: Halema’uma’u’s Collapse Continues

June 11: Summit Hiccups, Ocean Entry Upwelling

Fissure8’s “three closely space fountains” are starting to climb down, reported at 115-130 feet last night, and “fluctuating heights from below the 115 ft high spatter cone around it up to 180 feet” this afternoon. But its lava flow is still full to its banks, entering the ocean in Kapoho with minor steam explosions. “Weak lava activity” was spotted at fissure 16/18 last night.

USGS: “The three closely spaced lava fountains at fissure 8 reached maximum heights of 115-130 feet overnight. Lava fragments falling from the fountains are building a cinder-and-spatter cone around the erupting vent, with the bulk of the fragments falling on the downwind side of the cone. Fissure 8 continues to feed a channelized lava flow that reaches the ocean at Kapoho.” (Full-sized)

Last night, Kilauea’s summit hiccuped: there was a small explosion at 12:46am, after which, seismicity did not drop off until after another, larger explosion at 4:43am like the ones we’ve seen lately (registered as M5.4).

USGS: “A series of wide-angle webcam images, captured by a camera in HVO’s observation tower between June 1 and June 10, 2018, show ongoing subsidence around Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea in this animated GIF.” (Full-sized)

Since Saturday, Fissure 8’s gas emissions have been much higher than last week, whereas summit SO2 is half what it was before the current eruption. (I’m not sure why HVO’s Kilauea alerts report “volcanic gasses” for one and only SO2 for the other.)

(The “Lava Livestream” house is still safe, if marooned, near white mast): 

USGS: “Aerial view of the fissure 8 lava channel on Kīlauea Volcano’s lower East Rift Zone in the vicinity of the Kapoho cone, with fissure 8 fountains visible in the distance (upper left). Helicopter overflights of the eruption site are routinely scheduled to check for any new outbreaks of lava and to collect GPS data on the active flow—information that’s needed to make the flow field maps that are posted on HVO’s website” (Full-sized)

Here’s a double feature from Mick Kalber’s daily overflights— below is his June 11 lava video, but I missed his June 10 flyover vid and lava update notes.

Below the cut: more great images, overflight vids, and some interesting USGS answers to questions on social media.

Continue reading June 11: Summit Hiccups, Ocean Entry Upwelling

June 6: Summit Explosions Explained (And Predicted!)

USGS/HVO photo of Fissure 8, spatter cone and rainbow, June 6.
Today’s Eruption Update:

Last night, USGS scientist Steve Brantley explained the current eruption in an informative 10 minute talk. I transcribed it as a separate post, but here’s a rough summary: Magma heading down to the Lower East Rift Zone is causing the summit to deflate. Deflation is causing a pattern of more and more earthquakes over 30-50 hours until the summit releases the strain with an explosion, accompanied by an ash cloud.

Sure enough, there was an M5.6 explosion and 10,000 foot ash cloud at 4:32pm. HVO’s Twitter account had a great impromptu Q&A session about it (see below).

Meanwhile, down in the Lower East Rift Zone, Fissure 8 shows no signs of slowing. It’s wiped out Vacationland and nearly all of Kapoho Beach Lots, and is continuing to create new (crumbly, hazardous) beachfront real estate.

USGS has also been posting some striking imagery today.

Video description: “HVO’s mid-day overflight on June 5 shows ongoing partial collapse of Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano. To the north of the former visitor Overlook parking area (closed in 2008) is the site of the former lava lake—now a deep hole piled with wall-rock rubble. The western portion of Halema‘uma‘u has moved down and toward the center of the crater as new cracks form on the caldera floor to the west. Kīlauea’s summit continues to subside due to withdrawal of magma towards the volcano’s East Rift Zone.”

They’ve also posted drone footage of Fissure 8 lava flow on June 3. Houses give a sense of scale:

(Link to video description)

Here’s this morning’s USGS helicopter overflight of Fissure 8:

More images, lots of great geology info below the cut. But first, a 2-minute USGS briefing, since we skipped yesterday’s:

Continue reading June 6: Summit Explosions Explained (And Predicted!)

June 4: Lava Enters Kapoho Bay

june 4 Kilauea Eruption Summary / Infographic by USGS
Text version at link: June 4 Kilauea Infographic, HVO/USGS

Latest numbers: 
Lava coverage ~7.7 square miles, 19.9 square km, 4917 acres.
Janet Snyder, spokesperson from Hawai’i County Mayor’s Office, says at least 117 homes destroyed, but Civil Defense admin Talmadge Magno says probably “a lot more”

Here’s a video clip and two screengrabs to sum up Kilauea’s activity today: a half-mile-wide a’a flow pouring into Kapoho Bay and slowly filling it, while the summit steams weakly after a 5.5 earthquake yesterday.

Kapoho Bay, USGS overflight, 6:13am (HST) this morning:

Screengrabs from the Halema’uma’u and LERZ webcams about 3pm:

Taken from Overlook Vent Wide Angle Webcam, HVO/USGS, Jun 4, 3pm local time. Only light steam.
Screengrab from USGS/HVO Lower East Rift Zone webcam, June 4, 3pm. Fissure 8 still fountaining away with broad lava flow issuing to right (northeast), heading down to Kapoho.

ETA: Oh, look. Perfect angle of the sun right now.

Jun 4, 6:20 pm – Nice webcam image from HVO.

Additional info from HVO morning status report: “Local videographers reported that lava entered the ocean at Kapoho Bay at about 10:30 PM HST on June 3. […] A lava breakout is also occurring upslope [north] of the Kapoho cone cinder pit, with active flows about 330 yards southeast of the intersection of Railroad Avenue and Cinder Road..   […]Following the small [M5.5] explosion at about 3:50 PM HST on June 3, earthquake activity at the summit has been low. Inward slumping of the rim and walls of Halema`uma`u continues in response to persistent subsidence. ”

June 4 Kilauea Eruption Digest:
  • USGS Info/Updates
  • Posts from Other Geologists
  • National Park Damage Report
  • News from Hawaiian Media
  • Images/Videos From Social Media

Continue reading June 4: Lava Enters Kapoho Bay

June 3: Kapoho’s Lava Woes and Guatemala’s Heartbreak

I write with a heavy heart tonight.

While Kilauea claims homes, possessions, and places people loved— and animals, sadly— it’s a relatively benign volcano (as long as it remains in its lava-gushing “effusive phase”). Its “ballistic rocks” can’t fly much farther than half a mile. Ash and vog hamper quality of life, but aren’t instantly deadly. Its lava moves slowly enough for people to escape. Lava creates new land while it destroys, and it breaks down eventually into fertile soil. While it’s destructive, it’s also beautiful:

This is a "waterfall" of lava pouring into Green Lake that is inside the Kapoho Crater on Green Mountain. The lake…

Posted by Don Hurzeler on Sunday, June 3, 2018

That’s the life’s blood of a shield volcano like Kilauea. But there’s another kind of volcano I’ve mentioned before: stratovolcanoes like Krakatoa and Mount St. Helens. Their silica-rich, stiff, sticky lava piles up into steep mountains that can bottle up tremendous pressure before letting go. I’m afraid that’s probably what happened in Guatemala today.

Careless news media (even the BBC!) are claiming that a river of lava from volcan del Fuego killed over 20 people and injured dozens more. But all the videos I saw (apart from videos of Leilani Estates passed off as Guatemala) show pyroclastic flows:

Not that scary-looking, eh? But nighttime shows the true face of a pyroclastic flow (Sinabung, Indonesia).

Dr. Janine Krippner pointed out this brief informative video explaining what pyroclastic flows are and why they’re so dangerous. Here’s the Spanish language version. Hearing-impaired? See What Is a Pyroclastic Flow? or ¿Qué son los flujos piroclásticos?

Please spare some compassionate thoughts for the Guatemalans caught in this eruption. Most of them probably thought those gray clouds were just (cooled) ash, like what’s irritating Hawaiians living downwind from Halema’uma’u. (No, Kilauea’s not going to do that.)

Today’s kilauea eruption summary
USGS caption: “Photo from 7AM helicopter overflight, hovering offshore and looking up the flowfront. Nearly all of the front was active and advancing; advance rates were estimated at an average of 250 feet/hour (76 m/hr), and as of 7AM the flow was 500 yards (457 m) from the ocean.” (Full-sized)

As for Kilauea, the main news today was fissure 8’s lava flow making its finall approach to the shore through the Kapoho Beach Lots/Vacationland area.

And as if in response to news media headlines claiming it’s “fallen quiet,” the summit woke up again with a whole popcorn-popper’s worth of earthquakes, including a beefy M5.5 in the afternoon and an ash cloud rising to 8,000 feet.

Here’s my daily digest of Kilauea eruption news, including:

  • Updates/info from the USGS and other geologists
  • eruption news from Hawaii Civil Defense
  • Local news stations covering the eruption and its impact
  • relevant social media posts by informed eyewitnesses

Continue reading June 3: Kapoho’s Lava Woes and Guatemala’s Heartbreak

June 2: Kapoho Isolated, Green Lake Evaporated

Today’s Eruption Summary:

After several days of anticipation, Fissure 8 arrived at last at Four Corners, the intersection of Highway 132 & 137. That gave local residents more time to retrieve their belongs before access to and from the Kapoho/Vacationland area was cut off.

USGS Caption: Northern edge of the fissure 8 flow front on the night of June 1, as it approached the intersection of Highways 132 and 137, known as “Four Corners.” (Full-sized)

Sadly, while people can evacuate, precious landmarks can’t. Today Green Lake seems to have gone the same way as the Queen’s Bath in Kalapana:

USGS Caption: “As fissure 8 lava flowed into Green Lake, the lake water boiled away, sending a white plume high into the sky—visible from afar between around 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. HST. This aerial photo, taken a couple of hours later by the Hawai‘i County Fire Department, shows still-steaming lava within Green Lake, located near the intersection of Highways 132 and 137.” (Full-sized)

Fissure 18 fell asleep before its flow could cross 137 again, but at this point, it hardly matters.

The summit was steaming with minimal ash today. However, news headlines claiming “crater falls quiet” may be greatly exaggerated. Time will tell.

USGS Morning Update

Continue reading June 2: Kapoho Isolated, Green Lake Evaporated

June 1: Halema’uma’u Exposed

Today’s Eruption Summary

Fissure 8 continues to pump out vast amounts of lava, although it’s slacked off a tad from yesterday’s 260-foot display. One of its fingers burned a building or two at PGV. Other lobes closed in on Kapoho throughout the day, touching Highway 132 again half a mile north of Four Corners at 3:30. Fissure 18, which has been sending a flow east and down towards the ocean, has pretty much stalled apart from some small breakouts. Authorities were ordering Kapoho-area residents out today before lava cuts their only remaining road to the rest of the island.

Update: just as I was about to hit post.

(That’s a photo of Four Corners, which is the intersection of  Hwy 132 & 137. Apparently the lava’s started using 132 as a shortcut again.)

The summit has been steaming and vogging away, but the overlook vent has now been choked with debris falling from its walls. Ash explosions have nearly stopped since the 11am May 30 ash eruption that rose 12,000 ft.  Scientists are trying to figure out whether this means the main explosive phase is finished, or whether it’s going to build up enough pressure to blow out the clog. (That said, the crater has not “fallen quiet,” as many non-Hawaiian news stations claimed today. According to @NWSHonolulu, there was a minor “burp” of ash just after 1:30pm.)

Fantastic Kilauea Photo Gallery

@cheaptarts pointed me to photographer Andrew Richard Hara’s amazing Kilauea Instagram. A couple examples:

20180522 @ 03:30 HST – Methane field flames simmer in new cracks from Fissure 15 and 19 open up on the southeastern side of PGV, burning a State of Hawaii warehouse next to Pohoiki Road. Slow moving pahoehoe begins to approach PGV land at a crawl. . If you are worried about PGV, please remember that there are 23 fissures that have and emitting HF, H2S, and SO2 gases throughout this entire eruptive series. I'm not an expert by any means, but I try to remind myself that the gases that could be released at PGV are already being released into the atmosphere as we speak, outside of PGV's property. . For those who are wondering, I have official permission to be documenting this area. All areas that I have documented throughout this eruptive series have been through approved with legal access. Please kokua and do not attempt to trespass in areas unless official approval has been granted. . Many areas are now becoming inaccessible and the majority are dangerous due to volcanic hazards. . My respect and best wishes go out to the neighborhood of Leilani Estates, Lanipuna Gardens, and the areas within and between Kapoho. . #leilani #lava #pohoiki #lanipunagardens #bigisland#lavaflow #hawaii #geology #fissure #volcano @hawaiinewsnow

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20180529 @ 15:30-19:30 HST – Fissure 8 on Luana Street . Moderate southwest trade winds shifted gaseous plumes of smoke and gas while Pele’s hair, light fragments of cinder, and reticulate showered from the skies up to five blocks (up to Alapai Street) in radius F8’s eruptive site. F8 generated massive channels of lava extending partially east and north over older flows on Luana Street. Nearby, F24 sputtered glimpses of orange lava a few feet in the air and is unlikely to be contributing any major part in F8’s aggressive effusion rate. Massive bodies of new pahoehoe lava beds radiated an intense amount of heat, keeping ambient temperatures consistently within ~90°F at our location. . All areas that I have documented throughout this eruptive series have been through approved with legal access. Please kokua and do not attempt to trespass in areas unless official approval has been granted. The majority of my efforts are without pay and all expenses are out of pocket. The content shared is being shared without cost to our local news networks for community awareness and support. Some footage does help to pay a very small portion of my expenses. . Many areas are now inaccessible and the majority are dangerous due to volcanic hazards. . My respect and best wishes go out to the neighborhood of Leilani Estates, Lanipuna Gardens, and the areas within and between Kapoho. My heart especially goes out to all of my friends who have lost their homes in this fissure eruption. I am at a loss of words. _____ #leilaniestates #eruption #bigisland #helicopter #hawaii #aerial #volcano #lanipunagardens @hawaiitribuneherald @hawaiinewsnow @natgeo @milekalincoln @bruceomori

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Pretty, huh? Okay, let’s get down to the day’s Kilauea news, views, and eruption information:

Continue reading June 1: Halema’uma’u Exposed

May 31: One Month On

It’s been exactly a month since the first lava started emerging from fissures in Leilani Estates on May 3. And what a month it’s been.

USGS Caption: Crews make visual observations of activity at fissure 8 around 5:30 am HST. Fountain heights this morning continue to reach 70 to 80 m (230 to 260 ft above ground level. The fountaining feeds a lava flow that is moving to the northeast along Highway 132 into the area of Noni Farms Road. Full-sized)

The Lower East Rift Zone (LERZ) eruption has built in intensity by stages. Earthquakes, cracks, fissures, toxic gasses, spattering lava, larger and longer lava flows, and increasingly voluminous fountains have slowly engulfed two subdivisions and the forests and fields of lower Puna. They’ve heaped up acres of spatter ramparts, thick lava flows, overflowing ponds and rivers creeping down to the ocean. They’ve emitted a’a and pahoehoe, spatter and lava bombs, Pele’s Hair and Pele’s Tears, tephra/pyroclasts and cinders, vog, laze, and glowing blue flames.

Meanwhile, Pu’u O’o on Kilauea’s shoulder drained and died after a historic 35-year-long eruption. The summit lava lake in Halema’uma’u Crater followed suit, draining away more gradually but no less dramatically, with rockfalls and earthquakes and clouds of ash rising as high as 15,000 feet. Downwind communities are suffering from its ash and vog. The threat of steam explosions sending rocks flying half a mile has forced the closure of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. That, coupled with jittery tourist cancellations, has struck almost as big a blow to the rest of the Big Island as lava has done to a few square miles of Puna.

The USGS and Hawaii Civil Defense have done a herculean job of monitoring, informing, warning, and moving people out of harm’s way in this fast-moving and complex natural disaster. And locals are rallying as best they can to support one another.

Today’s Eruption Summary

Kilauea’s still pulling some (alas, not all) of its punches. Early Wednesday morning, Fissure 8’s lava flow was surging towards Four Corners in sprints up to 600 yards an hour, causing emergency officials to go door to door ordering emergency evacuations. Luckily, it’s slowed, although it’s still inching towards the last remaining road in and out of Puna. People have had two precious days to go back and rescue pets and possessions before the lava cuts them off.

Meanwhile, the summit today was steaming with minor ash explosions. The USGS just released another drone survey of Halema’uma’u filmed May 26:

See caption on USGS website, and compare with drone footage of May 21.

USGS STATUS UPDATE: MAY 31 9:30 AM

Continue reading May 31: One Month On