Kīlauea is erupting again, with 330-feet high lava fountains for episode No. 25

At 11:57 a.m. on Wednesday, as scientists expected, Kīlauea began erupting again.

By 12:30 p.m., the volume and vigor of lava fountains has increased for Episode 25 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption of the volcano on the Big Island. This series began in late December.

Lava is currently fountaining from the north vent, reaching heights of approximately 330 feet, more than a football field high, according to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

All current and recent activity is within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.

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 Tuesday. This activity, which occurred at a rate of about 5 to 10 gas piston events per hour, continued to increase in intensity until 11:57 a.m. Wednesday.

That’s when a small sustained dome fountain began to feed lava flows onto the crater floor. As of 12:30 p.m., fountains from the north vent are reaching about 165 feet high and feeding multiple lava streams. Fountains heights are likely to increase in the coming hours. 

Most episodes of Halemaʻumaʻu lava fountaining since the first of this series on Dec. 23, have continued for around a day or less and have been separated by pauses in eruptive activity lasting generally at least several days. 

• Timeline of eruptive episodes since December 23, 2024: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/science/eruption-information 
• Three Kīlauea summit livestream videos are available here: https://www.youtube.com/@usgs/streams 

No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone. A VAN/VONA will be issued when sustained lava fountaining ceases and the eruption is paused, or earlier if the situation warrants a further update.

Kīlauea Volcano Alert Level/Aviation Color Code remain at WATCH/ORANGE.