Kīlauea erupted in a region that had not seen lava flow in nearly a half-century – despite being Hawaii’s most active volcanoes.
The Kīlauea volcano spewed lava from fissures about a mile south of its caldera starting around 12.30am local time on Monday, according to US Geological Survey’s (USGS) Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
Webcams picked up a glow which signaled that the lava flow was in a section within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park that last experienced an eruption in 1974.
‘The December 1974 eruption lasted about 6 hours but was far more voluminous and covered a much larger area,’ stated the USGS on its website on Monday. ‘At this time, it is not possible to say how long the current eruption will last.’
Monday’s eruption appears to have started a mile south of the Kīlauea caldera, and north of the Koa’e fault and Hilina Pali Road.
After the eruption began, the USGS elevated the Volcano Alert Level for hazards on the ground from watch to warning, and raised the Aviation Color Code was from orange to red.
About eight hours later at 8.30am local time, the level was lowered back to watch and the code to orange due to the low volume of lava and the remote location.
The observatory recorded about 250 earthquakes under the Kīlauea summit hours before the eruption, and some scientists raised concerns.
Where in Hawaii is Kīlauea?
Kīlauea is the ‘youngest and most active volcano’ on the island of Hawaii, or the Big Island of the archipelago of eight major volcanic islands.
The Big Island is southeasternmost of the island chain. Kīlauea is located near the southeastern shore of the Big Island. It is more than 200 miles away from Honolulu, which is the most developed area and on the island of Oahu.
‘First forming underwater roughly 280,000 years ago, Kīlauea is a fairly typical shield volcano with long, shallow slopes,’ states the National Park Service’s website. ‘Its surface makes up an area slightly smaller than the island of Oahu.’
Kīlauea is located on the same island as Mauna Loa, which is the largest active volcano in the world. Both are inside the volcanoes national park.
Is it safe to travel there?
Kīlauea’s new eruption has paused and did not at any point pose a threat to human life or essential infrastructure. As such, there is no travel advisory against visiting Hawaii.
The national park remains open, as the section affected by the eruption is not accessible by foot or vehicle.
But visitors may be able to catch a glimpse of the phenomenon from other parts of the park.
‘Right now Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is open,’ said Jessica Ferracane of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, according to KHON2. ‘The primary closure is Maunaiki Trail which is in the remote southwest area.”
Within Kīlauea’s caldera is the Halema’uma’u Crater, which erupted nearly a year ago to the date, on June 7, 2023. Lava was not expected to reach areas near residents, but they were warned to watch out for Pele’s hair, which are volcanic glass in the form of hair-like strands.
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