Photo and Video Chronology - Images of the June 3 fissure eruption from Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone

By Hawaiian Volcano Observatory June 7, 2024

The eruption that began on Monday, June 3, southwest of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera) within Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park has ended. Tremor and incandescence from the fissure vents decreased significantly over the past day. Volcanic gas emissions at the eruption site have decreased significantly and are approaching background levels.

HVO geologists examine ground cracks and new lava flows from the Southwest Rift Zone eruption

Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone erupted briefly on June 3; Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists continue to monitor the area.

A geologist in a bright orange shirt walks beside a newly-erupted lava flow, which barely reaches the height of their waist — The eruption on Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone remained paused on Tuesday, June 4, but Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists visited the area to take measurements of the previous day's lava flows. Here, a geologist examines part of the lava flow from fissure 2. Note that none of the lava flow is as tall as the geologist; similar to the December 1974 eruption from the same area on Kīlauea, the eruption of June 3 produced extremely thin Pāhoehoe flows. This contrasts with other recent eruptions like that at Pu‘u‘ō‘ō on Kīlauea's East Rift Zone between 1983 and 2018, where Pāhoehoe flows sometimes inflated to tens of meters in thickness. USGS photo by M. Zoeller (HVO).

Color photograph of scientists documenting eruption — Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists document the early phases of the eruption southwest of Kīlauea summit on June 3, 2024. On the left, a geologist photographs the activity while a geologist on the right uses the laser rangefinder to measure the length of the fissure and height of the fountains. USGS image by C. Sealing.

Color photograph of scientist examining rock sample — USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists visited the now inactive fissures that formed on June 3rd on the upper Southwest Rift Zone of Kīlauea. Looking through a hand lens, geologists recognize the abundance of olivine ranging from 1-3 mm (about 0.1 inch) in size in the spatter samples. Petrographic and geochemical analyses will reveal the storage history and evolution of this lava. USGS Photo by M. Zoeller.

Color photograph of fresh lava flows — During the Kīlauea Southwest Rift Zone eruption on June 3, fissures 3 and 4—located farther to the southwest than fissures 1 and 1— erupted the larger volumes of lava and continue to exhibit elevated gas emissions. Hazards associated with active or recent lava flows include hot and glassy (sharp) surfaces that can cause serious burns, abrasions, and lacerations upon contact with unprotected or exposed skin; uneven and rough terrain can lead to falls and other injuries; hot temperatures that can cause heat exhaustion or dehydration, or in heavy rain can produce steamy ground-fog that can be acidic, severely limiting visibility and sometimes causing difficulty breathing. USGS photo by A.R. Nalesnik.

Color photograph of ground cracks — In addition to elevated volcanic gas emissions, other significant hazards also remain around the recent eruption site on the upper Southwest Rift Zone of Kīlauea. Minor to severe ground fractures and subsidence features that formed during the June 3 eruption may continue to widen and offset, may have unstable overhanging edges, and should be avoided. Most cracks that formed during the June 3 Kīlauea Southwest Rift Zone eruption are several inches (2 to 5 centimeters) wide with some extending to up to 6.5 feet (2 meters) wide. In this photo, a crack extends towards Pu‘ukoa‘e in the background. USGS photo by A.R. Nalesnik.Sources/Usag

Color photograph of gound cracks on ash covered surface — During an overflight at approximately 8:15 a.m. HST on June 6, 2024, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists observed the extensive crack features on either side of the now inactive fissures from the June 3 Kīlauea Southwest Rift Zone eruption. Cracks range in length and are parallel to the fissure system. USGS photo by A.R. Nalesnik.

Color photograph of lava flow and volcanic gas — Aerial overview of fissures 3 and 4 of the now paused Kīlauea Southwest Rift Zone eruption that began on June 3, 2024. During an overflight at approximately 8:15 a.m. HST on June 6, 2024, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists observed persistent gas emissions and no active lava. USGS Image by A.R. Nalesnik.

Color photograph of lava flows from fissure — During the June 3, 2024, Southwest Rift Zone eruption, Fissures 1 and 2 (pictured here) had low erupted volumes compared to fissures 3 and 4. Fissures 1 and 2 were located closer to Kalupele (Kīlauea summit caldera), whereas fissures 3 and 4 are on the southwest section of the fissure system. USGS Image by A.R. Nalesnik.

Color photograph of distant volcanic gas plume — View to the southwest of Kīlauea's Southwest Rift Zone eruption vents emitting volcanic gas, as seen from the Red Hill Cabin on Mauna Loa's Northeast Rift Zone midday on June 4, 2024. USGS photo by K. Lynn.

HVO field engineers install a new seismometer on the Southwest Rift Zone of Kīlauea

Color photograph of field engineers installing new instrumentation — On June 6, USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory field engineers installed a new seismometer on the Southwest Rift Zone of Kīlauea to monitor earthquakes. The new seismic station is co-located at an existing monitoring station consisting of a GPS and high-resolution gas monitoring equipment. In this image, a cable is installed beneath the ground surface, going from the existing power system (consisting of solar panels and large batteries) to the seismometer. USGS image by M. Warren.

Color photograph of seismometer buried in the ground — The new seismometer at station KOSM on the Southwest Rift Zone of Kīlauea being buried in the ground, with permission from Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. This photo was taken before the seismometer was totally buried. Seismometers are buried beneath the ground surface to protect them from noise and other disturbances at the surface, which promotes a clearer signal. USGS image by M. Warren.

Color photograph of field engineers at volcano monitoring station — At the KOSM GPS located station on the Southwest Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea, HVO field engineers installed a new seismic sensor, with permission from Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. USGS image by M. Warren on June 6, 2024.

Color photograph of field engineer at distant volcano monitoring station — USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory field engineers visited the KOSM GPS station on June 6, 2024, to install a new seismic sensor, with permission from Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. The KOSM station is located southwest of the now inactive fissure 4 of the Southwest Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea (the southwest-most fissure). USGS image by A.R. Nalesnik.

Examining fresh lava samples from the June 3, 2024, Southwest Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea

Color photograph of volcanic spatter bomb — The recent Southwest Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea produced small volumes of lava and spatter. When very fluid lava lands on the ground, it may flatten upon impact and produce spatter known as 'pancake bombs.' When lava is stretched even further when cooling, thin strands of glass (Pele's hair) are created. The spatter pictured here is approximately 10 inches (25 centimeters) across. USGS image by A.R. Nalesnik.

Color photograph of fragmented lava samples — The recent Southwest Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea produced small volumes of lava, and fountains left volcanic spatter on top of and beyond the extent of the newly erupted flows. The collected pieces of spatter range in size up to 4 inches (1 to 10 centimeters). USGS image by A.R. Nalesnik.

Color photograph of powdered rock sample — The recent Southwest Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea produced small volumes of lava, and fountains left volcanic spatter on top of and beyond the extent of the newly erupted flows. The collected pieces of spatter range in size up to 4 inches (1 to 10 centimeters). USGS image by A.R. Nalesnik.

Maps showing the distribution of lava flows and ground deformation associated with the June 3, 2024, eruption of Kīlauea Southwest Rift Zone

Color images of temperatures of new lava flows — These two thermal maps were constructed from images captured during USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory helicopter overflights on June 3, 2024, at 6:00 a.m. HST (left) and June 4, 2024, at 12:00 p.m. HST (right). Covering the same extent and using the same thermal color scale, you may notice slight expansion of lava flows to the south following the first overflight. However, by the time of the second overflight, eruptive activity had paused and the flows had begun to cool.

Color map showing ground deformation on volcano — This map shows recent deformation spanning the recent eruption at Kīlauea. It covers from May 28 to June 6, 2024, and is recorded by the Italian Space Agency's (ASI) Cosmo-SkyMED satellite. Colored fringes denote areas of ground deformation, with more fringes indicating more deformation. Each color cycle represents 1.5 cm (0.6 in) of ground motion indicative of opening of a dike-like body trending northeast-southwest that fed the eruption. Red lines are the locations of fissures that were active during the eruption and black lines outline the recent lava flows. Arrow in the upper left indicates satellite orbit direction (arrow) and look direction (bar). For information about interpreting interferograms, see this "Volcano Watch" article: Reading the rainbow: How to interpret an interferogram.

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