Hawaiian Volcano Update: Kīlauea Summit Eruption’s Episode 5 Begins & Ends
Today marks one month since Kīlauea’s latest eruption began at its summit, its 6th summit eruption in just over 4 years. Since last week, this eruption ended its 4th episode after 3 days of lava output, paused for 4 days, began its 5th episode yesterday afternoon, then paused again this morning after less than 14 hours of activity. The latest outburst renewed high emission rates of volcanic gas at around 10,000 tonnes of SO2 per day, also dropping fresh Pele’s hairs (strands of volcanic glass) at a nearby overlook within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. With the eruption fully contained within the summit crater in the National Park, the gas and particulates which form vog pose the greatest threat to people, especially those with respiratory sensitivities, and especially with variable winds the island has experienced in recent weeks. Vog hazards are not new to island residents, and the usual precautions and preparations apply – more information at https://vog.ivhhn.org/.
This latest pair of eruptive episodes go against the earlier trend of lengthening phases and pauses in between, although the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has successfully bracketed both restarts within a time window once again. Continuing their forecasts, this morning’s update states, “The Uēkahuna tiltmenter has recorded about 0.2-0.3 microradians in the 3 hours since episode 4 ended. If this rapid rate of recovery continues, it is possible for another episode to begin as early as the next 3-4 days, but more time is needed to accurately estimate a probability window. The probable window of time for the start of the next episode is based upon behavior prior to previous episodes and could be longer if the inflation rate slows or more pressure is required to initiate the next eruptive episode.” Prior forecasts for episode 5 to start began on Tuesday, January 21 and ranged to Sunday, January 26, with the actual restart occurring on Wednesday, January 22.
The ongoing summit eruption, even with its episodes and pauses, continues to relieve stresses on Kīlauea’s rift zones, which have remained relatively quiet with no major seismicity or ground deformation since more than a week before the current eruption. The volcano’s south flank still shows its typical seismicity, showing the geographic range and depth of adjustments occuring at the same time as the eruption.
Maunaloa continues to inflate quietly its established post-eruption pattern, with nothing new to report. 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.
