Images

View looking downslope at the various cones that dot Mauna Loa's Northeast Rift Zone. The edge of North Pit, on the north side of Moku‘āweoweo, is in the foreground.

This edge of the cliff above Moku‘āweoweo, at an elevation of 13,661 feet, is only a few feet lower than Mauna Loa's high point (out of sight to the left). The cliff here is about 600 feet high. Mauna Kea, in the background to the right rises to an elevation of 13,796 feet, barely 100 feet higher the summit of Mauna Loa.

The 1949 cinder-and-spatter cone (left) and 1940 spatter cone (right) as seen from the floor of Mauna Loa's summit caldera, looking to the southwest. Pāhoehoe flows in the foreground were erupted in 1984.

Close-up of the 1949 cinder-and-spatter cone as seen from the floor of Moku‘āweoweo, Mauna Loa's summit caldera. pāhoehoe lava visible in the foreground (lower half of photo) was erupted in 1940. Beyond these flows, you can see pāhoehoe flows, spatter, and tephra erupted in 1949.

The 1940 cinder-and-spatter cone as seen from the caldera floor looking to the southeast. This cone, which is about 114 m (373 feet) high, was built around the vent as lava spewed from it over a period of 134 days. The dark-colored pāhoehoe flows visible in the foreground were erupted in 1984.

Sulfur, not snow, paints the ground white in the Sulfur Cone area on Mauna Loa's upper Southwest Rift Zone. The summit of Mauna Loa is over the slope of the mountain out of sight to the left in the background.

The 1940 cone, just above center, pokes up above the otherwise relatively flat floor of Moku‘āweoweo - the summit caldera of Mauna Loa. Mauna Kea rises up in the background.

Controlled burn at Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

USGS employees deploys a water conductivity/temperature/depth probe (AquaTroll) for a temporary study along the Madison River, Yellowstone.

USGS scientist Errol Meche installs a temporary streamgage to measure water levels above and below the the Morganza Spillway. USGS streamflow information is used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help them make informed flood management decisions. One floodgate on the Morganza Spillway was opened on May 14, 2011.

USGS scientists Todd Baumann and Errol Meche install a temporary streamgage to measure water levels above and below the the Morganza Spillway. USGS streamflow information is used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help them make informed flood management decisions. One floodgate on the Morganza Spillway was opened on May 14, 2011.

This photo was taken before one of the floodgates on the Morganza Spillway was opened on May 14, 2011. USGS streamflow information is used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help them make informed flood management decisions.

USGS scientists installed a real-time camera to view the floodwaters below the Morganza spillway. This photo was taken before one floodgate was opened on May 14, 2011.

USGS scientists Todd Baumann and Errol Meche install a temporary streamgage to measure water levels above and below the the Morganza Spillway. USGS streamflow information is used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help them make informed flood management decisions. One floodgate on the Morganza Spillway was opened on May 14, 2011.

USGS scientists take streamflow and water quality measurements downstream of the Bonnet Carre Spillway near Norco, La. The Army Corps of Engineers uses USGS streamflow data to help them manage flood control structures.

USGS scientists take streamflow and water quality measurements downstream of the Bonnet Carre Spillway near Norco, La. The Army Corps of Engineers uses USGS streamflow data to help them manage flood control structures.

Logs and other debris flow downstream of the Bonnet Carre Spillway near Norco, La. The Army Corps of Engineers uses USGS streamflow data to help them manage flood control structures.

USGS scientists take streamflow and water quality measurements downstream of the Bonnet Carre Spillway near Norco, La. The Army Corps of Engineers uses USGS streamflow data to help them manage flood control structures.

USGS streamflow information is used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help them make informed flood management decisions. One floodgate on the Morganza Spillway was opened on May 14, 2011. 

USGS scientists installed a real-time camera to view the floodwaters below the Morganza spillway. This photo was taken before one floodgate was opened on May 14, 2011.

This photo was taken before one of the floodgates on the Morganza Spillway was opened on May 14, 2011. USGS streamflow information is used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help them make informed flood management decisions.