Images

On Monday, April 26, 2021, lava continued to flow from the western vent (bottom left) into the active lava lake (center) in Halema‘uma‘u Crater at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano. The active lava lake surface continues to shrink as areas on the north (upper left) and south (center right) sides cool and solidify. This photograph was taken at 1:03 p.m.

This Landsat 8 Collection 2 image was acquired over the Richat Structure near the western edge of the Sahara Desert on April 25, 2020 and is shown as a natural color composite using the red, green, and blue bands (Bands 4,3,2).

This zoomed-in photo of the far southwest end of the active lava lake within Halema‘uma‘u at Kīlauea's summit was captured on Thursday, April 22, and it illustrates the process by which parts of the lava lake become inactive.

This map of Halema‘uma‘u at the summit of Kīlauea shows 20 m (66 ft) contour lines (dark gray) that mark locations of equal elevation above sea level (asl). The map shows that the lava lake has filled 228 m (748 ft) of the crater, to an elevation of 745 m (2444 ft) asl since the eruption began on December 20, 2020.

Delta wetland near Rio Vista, California.

On Thursday, April 22, HVO scientists observed the ongoing eruption at the Kīlauea summit from the south rim of Halema‘uma‘u. This photo shows the active western portion of the lava lake, which appears to be in the process of shrinking again, with its northeast (upper-right) and southwest (lower-left) ends crusting over substantially.

Map of Yellowstone National Park showing the location of major travertine deposits. The green dashed line is the outline of Yellowstone Caldera and red lines are major paved roads.

Photographs of travertine in Yellowstone. A) Travertine terraces actively forming at Mammoth Hot Springs.

Travertine sample from the Hillside Springs Group in Upper Geyser Basin, sampled under permit YELL-2020-SCI-8030. (Left) Cut and polished sample slab showing the different layers of travertine; dashed circles indicate where subsamples were taken for geochronology analysis.

Lava continues to erupt from the west vent within Halema‘uma‘u crater and feed the active lava lake at Kīlauea summit. Volcanic gas emissions from the west vent (lower left) remain elevated and were last measured on April 14 at about 950 t/d.

A telephoto view of the northwestern point of the main island within Halema‘uma‘u crater, at Kīlauea summit. A rockfall scar (center left) remains after a small collapse of the island was observed by field geologists around 12:43 p.m. HST on April 20, 2021. A sliver of the active lava lake surface is visible at the bottom of this photo.

A telephoto view of the southern lava lake crust and Halema‘uma‘u crater wall at the summit of Kīlauea. Many rockfalls from the steep and unstable crater walls of Halema‘uma‘u have deposited large boulders onto the stagnant lava surface over the past few months. This photo was taken from the west rim of Halema‘uma‘u looking southeast. USGS photo taken by L.

A telephoto view of the west vent and lava lake inlet within Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. Lava erupting from the west vent (upper left) continues to feed into the active lava lake through a wide inlet near the base of the cone (center right).

A view of Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, Island of Hawai‘i, showing the active western fissure with rising fumes, the active western portion of the lava lake (lighter colored area in the middle of the photo), and the big island within the lava lake (right).

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April 20 was the four-month anniversary of Kīlauea's ongoing summit eruption in Halema‘uma‘u. This animated GIF features approximately one thermal image for each day of the eruption and demonstrates eruptive activity over the past four months. At 9:30 p.m.

The Region 1, April 2021 "Honorable Mention #1" Winner (by Chelsea Delsack)

Photographs from a wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) found dead in Minnesota, USA.  (A) There are numerous multifocal to coalescing yellow proliferative lesions covering the eyelids, head, and neck with a region of ulceration and necrosis (*).  (B) Yellow irregular plaques (arrow heads) multifocally cover the oral cavity.

Photomicrographs from a wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) found dead in Minnesota, USA.  (A) The normal epithelium becomes markedly thickened due to hyperplasia of the stratum spinosum (left to right) with regions of ulceration and crusting (arrow). H&E stain.

Decidous trees in Reston, Virginia. Photo taken for Arbor Day 2021 near USGS Headquarters.

During a Kīlauea summit helicopter overflight on Friday, April 16, an HVO scientist captured this photo of the erupting western fissure and surrounding lava lake within Halema‘uma‘u. The active western potion of the lava lake, as seen here, measured approximately 300 m (984 ft) from end-to-end at the time. USGS image.