Images

A telephoto image of the skylight, captured without entering the closed area. Note the sagging lava surface in the foreground, an indication of just how unstable this area is.

On October 6, 2016, scientists lower an instrument package on a taut-wire mooring into the canyon. The sediment trap (long funnel-shaped device) is designed to capture mud and sand carried in turbidity flows; the other sensors measure currents and suspended sediment.

Sediment trap is being prepared for deployment into Monterey Canyon offshore of Monterey, California.

This video clip shows typical spattering activity in Kīlauea's summit lava lake. This spattering was occurring along the eastern margin of the lake on the evening of October 5.

The KALAHIKIOLA Congregational Church in KAP‘A‘āU was extensively damaged on October 15, 2006, by two earthquakes (magnitudes 6.7 and 6.0) off the northwest coast of Hawai‘i Island. The earthquakes were felt throughout the State of Hawaii, but the greatest damage occurred in the North Kona and Kohala Districts of the Island of Hawai‘i.

This photograph shows spattering at the southeast margin of Kīlauea's summit lava lake, as viewed from the west. This is the most common area on the lake to have spattering, but, because it is almost directly below the camera location, it is not visible in our webcam images.

This morning, spattering along the eastern margin of Kīlauea's summit lava lake built an overhanging ledge that was attached to the Overlook Crater wall. In this image, a few long stalactites can be seen dangling from the overhang (lower right). These stalactites were flexible enough to be swinging back and forth.

This video shows spattering in two locations of Kīlauea's summit lava lake. In the first segment, spattering is active in a small area in the southern portion of the lake. In the second segment, spattering on the east margin of the lake has created an overhanging ledge with dangling lava stalactites.

This satellite image was captured on Thursday, September 29, by the NASA/USGS Landsat 8 satellite. Although this is a false-color image, the color map has been chosen to mimic what the human eye would expect to see. Bright red pixels depict areas of very high temperatures and show active lava. White areas are clouds.

USGS hydrologic technician Jym Chapman (above) installs a rapid deployment gauge to measure water-surface elevation and other data in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, prior to Hurricane Matthew’s approach in October 2016. Hydrologist Tim Pojunas (below) measures an elevation reference point used to calibrate the newly installed RDG.

Lava continues to flow into the ocean at Kamokuna, however this afternoon there was no noticeable plume at the western delta (upper left). The eastern delta (center) is larger, with lava continuing to enter the ocean. A relatively small area of surface breakouts is active on the coastal plain about 1.5 km (0.9 miles) upslope from the ocean entry.

Left: Photo of the eastern delta showing the cracks parallel to the sea cliff. The delta is about 350-400 m (1150-1300 ft) wide and it extends about 150 m (490 ft) out from the old sea cliff. Deltas are unstable, and prone to collapse, because they are built on unconsolidated lava fragments.

A large skylight was open today on the 61g upper flow field. This morning, only the narrow skylight on the left was open. Hours later the larger area collapsed and exposed more of the swiftly moving lava stream in the tube. In this image, the skylight is about 5 m or 16 feet wide.

Another view of the larger skylight, about 5 m or 16 ft across, showing the thin roof on the tube in this area. This image is a reminder of the hazard of approaching skylights.

Shown here are three of the main volcanic cones (center and right) that make up the KAMAKAIA Hills on Kīlauea Volcano's Southwest Rift Zone.

A view of the lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u Crater at dusk, taken from the rim of Halema‘uma‘u (closed to the public due to volcanic hazards). The view is towards the northwest, with the broad summit of Mauna Loa near the top of the photograph. The lake was 34 meters (112 feet) below the Overlook crater rim at this time.

This video clip shows the northern portion of the lava lake, where episodic bubbling commonly occurs. The northern margin of the lake is in the upper right portion of the photo. Note how the bubbling occurs in the same general area, regardless of the movement of the crustal plates. The video is shown at 20x speed.

Since early September 2016, Kīlauea's summit lava lake level has fluctuated, as shown in these side-by-side webcam images. On September 10 (left), the summit lava lake rose to within 5 m (16 ft) of the vent rim, only to drop the next day with the onset of summit deflation.

USGS is studying climate change impacts to U.S. Pacific and Arctic coasts. Alaska’s north coast is predominantly erosional, retreating on average about 1.4 meters per year.

On September 10, 2016, Kīlauea Volcano's summit lava lake rose to within 5 m (16 ft) of the vent rim (shown above). This is the highest level the lake has reached since it overflowed the vent in April-May 2015, when lava flowed onto the floor of Halema‘uma‘u Crater, forming the dark-colored rock visible on either side of the vent.

Participants at the September 2016 Argus Workshop at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility in Duck, North Carolina. Labels provide names of four participants from USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Program (Long, Plant, Brown, Harrison) and two participants from Oregon State University (Holman, Stanley).