Hawaiian Volcano Update: Kīlauea Summit Eruption’s Episode 36 - November 13, 2025
Episode 36 of Kīlauea’s ongoing summit eruption lasted about 5 hours this past Sunday, November 9, with vigorous fountaining from both vents from 11:15 AM to 3:38 PM, when the north vent shut off while the south vent lasted a little longer until 4:16 PM. South vent fountains started smaller but peaked around 1,200 feet or 360 meters in height, while the north vent reached up to 750 feet or 230 meters high. A similar volume of lava (8 million cubic meters) was erupted as in the last 7 episodes, but with both fountains active this was the third successive episode with nearly double the discharge rate and half the duration. Following the latest outburst, monitoring signals are again showing a recharge pattern that seems likely to lead to another episode, with early forecasts by the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Obsevatory placing the window around the last week of November.
The first precursory overflow spilled out on Halloween night before resuming on Monday, November 3, after which over 180 overflow-drainback cycles occurred ahead of the main fountaining phase. With over 22 days between fountains, episode 36 followed the longest pause of the eruption in almost 11 months of activity. Gas emissions and tephra appeared to be contained by favorable winds to the sector southwest of the summit, within the closed area of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, with gasses also rising to disperse in the upper atmosphere. The typical venting of gas between episodes continues, although wet weather this week has lessened its impact around the summit area.
All eruptive activity has been confined to Kīlauea’s summit caldera within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, with no increased lava threat to people. Vog and tephra remain the most common hazards for island residents, and the usual precautions and preparations apply, especially for those with respiratory sensitivities – more information at https://vog.ivhhn.org/. There continue to be no significant changes on either of Kīlauea’s rift zones. Maunaloa continues to inflate its established post-eruption pattern, including a slight uptick in earthquakes in recent months. As usual, we summarize the monitoring signals, imagery, and reports available courtesy of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, annotating the presentation on screen as we go and discussing live viewer questions.
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