Spatter Cone Collapse at MLK Vent

(May 2, 2005, 05:30:04 to 07:30:02) During spring 2005, activity at the MLK vent, on the southwestern flank of the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō cone, changed from a period of construction to one of destruction. This was highlighted by the collapse of the main MLK spatter cone. The drain-back of lava beneath the spatter cone, following lava extrusion, apparently removed support of the overlying rock. Slight subsidence of the ground surface to the left of the cone can be seen occurring for a few minutes before the cone fell into the resultant cavity, presumably as lava drained away beneath the surface. The extrusion and collapse were also captured by a second time-lapse camera on the west side of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō (out of sight to the right from this view; see movie above). The images that make up this movie were acquired by a time-lapse camera positioned on the south flank of the Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō cone, about 70 meters from the MLK vent. Movie Details: Image interval = 1 minute Playback speed = 10 frames/sec Movie duration = 00:00:12 Camera Coordinates (WGS84): Lat: 19.3870º Long: -155.1056º View direction = ~196º