March 19, 2025 — Video of filling-draining cycles in lava pond at Kīlauea summit
Detailed Description
This video is shown at 100x speed and captures several cycles of filling and draining in the lava pond at the northern vent at the summit of Kīlauea on March 19, 20-25, during episode 14 of the ongoing eruption in Halema‘uma‘u. Each cycle begins with low fountaining and lava gradually refilling the pond above the conduit. The low dome fountain sometimes intensifies into a more vigorous, spattering source. Eventually, fountaining diminishes and lava slowly begins to drain back down the conduit, often associated with gas jetting and an increase in outgassing. This video covers approximately one hour of activity, and HVO geologists observed that the cycles were occurring at intervals of 8-9 minutes. This type of cyclic behavior in lava ponds has been commonly observed on Kīlauea, and is sometimes referred to as "gas pistoning."
Details
Sources/Usage
Public Domain.