UPDATE: Episode 32 of the ongoing eruption at Kīlauea ends after 13 hours
Update at 10 p.m. Sept. 2: Episode 32 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption ended abruptly at 8:01 p.m. on Tuesday after 13.4 hours of continuous fountaining.
According to Hawaiian Volcanoes Observatory, the north vent stopped erupting at approximately 7:49 p.m. and the smaller middle and south vents stopped erupting at approximately 8:01 p.m. with a few minutes of jetting, marking the end of episode 32.
Lava fountains reached up to 500 feet during this episode and averaged more than 250 cubic yards per second – producing over 12.5 million cubic yards of lava, the highest output for a short-lived fountain episode.
Lava flows from this episode covered 40-50% of the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu within the southern part of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera). The caldera may continue to exhibit slow movement or incandescence as the flows cool and solidify over the coming days.
Volcanic gas emissions have greatly decreased at the end of the eruption but were probably well in excess of 50,000 tonnes of SO2 per day during the vigorous fountaining.
The Uēkahuna tiltmeter recorded about 25 microradians of deflationary tilt during this episode. The end of the eruption was coincident with a rapid change from deflation to inflation at the summit and a decrease in seismic tremor intensity.
No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone. All current and recent activity is within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.
Original story at 7:16 a.m. Sept. 2: Episode 32 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption began at 6:35 a.m. on September 2.
At that time, north vent dome fountains transitioned into taller lava fountains, which have since become inclined at about 45 degrees northeast, similar to but less inclined than those of episode 31, according to the latest report from Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
Current fountains are about 500 feet high and arcing an equivalent distance into Halemaʻumaʻu crater. Past episodes have produced incandescent lava fountains over 1,000 feet high and the eruptive plume is currently 9,000 feet above ground level up to 20,000 feet above ground level.
According to the National Weather Service, winds are blowing from the northeast direction today, which suggests that volcanic gas emissions and volcanic material will be distributed to the southwest of Halemaʻumaʻu crater. If the fountains remain inclined ash and tephra will be greatly reduced but high SO2 gas emissions may impact communities to the south and west of Kīlaueaʻs summit.
Episode 32 was preceded by gas pistoning cycles that began around 8:30 p.m. on Sept. 1, followed by intermittent overflows from the north vent at 12:43 a.m. These intermittent overflows continued until 5:31 a.m., when a continuous overflow began in association with low dome fountain in the vent.
This dome fountain escalated in vigor around 6:35 a.m. when lava fountaining became taller. Rapid deflationary tilt and stronger seismic tremor began around the same time. Inclined fountains from the north vent are estimated at 500 feet high and feeding multiple lava streams as of 6:50 a.m.
- All eruptive activity is confined to Halemaʻumaʻu crater within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park; commercial airports in Hawaii County (KOA and ITO) will not be affected by this activity.
- Three Kīlauea summit livestream videos that show eruptive lava fountains are available here: V1cam, V2cam, V3cam.
- KPcam and MKcam provide views of the plume height for aviation purposes.
Most episodes of Halemaʻumaʻu lava fountaining since Dec. 23, 2024, 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 Dec. 23, 2024: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/science/eruption-information.
No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone. An advisory will be issued when sustained high lava fountaining begins, marking the start of episode 32, or earlier if the situation warrants a further update.
Kīlauea Volcano Alert Level/Aviation Color Code remain at WATCH/ORANGE. All current and recent activity is within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.
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