Images

This reference map depicts the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption on November 4, 2021. One eruptive vent is active within Halema‘uma‘u at this time, along the western edge of the rising lava lake.

The vent in the western wall of Halema‘uma‘u continues to erupt at the summit of Kīlauea. Volcanic gas emissions, primarily from the west vent (right), remain elevated. Sulfur dioxide (SO₂) emission rates were measured at around 3,600 tonnes per day on October 28, 2021. USGS photo taken on November 3, 2021, by L. DeSmither.

A telephoto image of the west vent in Halema‘uma‘u, taken from the northwest rim on November 3. Low roiling lava continues to erupt from the west vent, with occasional larger bursts of spatter. The spatter cone that has built up since the eruption began on September 29, contains ponded lava that supplies the lava lake through the tubed-over spillway.

A photo of the west vent and active western portion of the lava lake within Halema‘uma‘u, at Kīlauea summit. The eastern side of the lava lake (out of view to the right), has a stagnant solidified crust on the surface. USGS photo taken by L. DeSmither on November 3, 2021.

A telephoto image of the west vent in Halema‘uma‘u crater at the summit of Kīlauea. Ponded lava within the spatter cone supplies lava into the lava lake through the tubed-over spillway. The fast-moving lava stream is incandescent as it enters into the lava lake at the base of the cone.

The extent of the active surface of the lava lake (orange) within Halema‘uma‘u crater, at the summit of Kīlauea, is clearly delineated as the sun sets on November 2, 2021. Photo taken at 5:56 p.m. HST from the west rim. USGS photo by J.M. Chang.

Comparison of (a) 1904 Historical map with (b) 1988 USGS map. Colloidal Pool is a large, labeled pool roughly located on a straight line between Hurricane vent and Whirligig Geyser on the 1988 map (b); this same transect on the 1904 map (a) shows no feature at that location (white circle).

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of the Colloidal Pool colloids (images are a combination of backscatter and secondary electrons). The colloids are a mixture of clay particles, hydrated silica, alunite, and diatoms.

Images of olivine from Hawaiian volcanoes. In olivine the abundance of magnesium (Mg) is expressed as the forsterite content (Fo)—which is a ratio of how much Mg there is compared to the iron (Fe). Left: Green olivine from Mauna Loa’s 1852 eruption, viewed under a microscope. USGS&nbsp

A branching root cast from grasses that grew on the ashy lahars deposited along the ancestral Missouri River system. Plant roots growing in calcareous soils made holes that were filled with calcite after the organics rotted away.  Photo by Rob Thomas, August 2021.

A telephoto image of the northeast margin of the lava lake within Halema‘uma‘u, at Kīlauea summit, on November 1, 2021. The lava lake has now risen high enough to start covering the lowest portion of the down-dropped block on the north side of Halema‘uma‘u.

A sequence of telephoto images of the west vent (spanning 4 seconds), within Halema‘uma‘u at Kīlauea summit. The west vent continues to produce low-level lava fountains (seen here), which are forming an elevated pond of lava within the spatter cone.

A wide view of the lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u, at the summit of Kīlauea, on November 1, 2021. This view, looking east, shows the west vent (bottom center) which continues to supply lava to the active portion of the lava lake, while the eastern portion (far side of lake) is crusted over.

Microscope thin-section photo of Lava Creek Tuff “unit 2.” Photo by Ray Salazar (Montana State University) on October 28, 2021.

A view of White Mountain -- a deposit of the Heart Mountain detachment -- from the Sunlight Basin Road in Wyoming. Much of the evidence supporting the lamprophyre diatreme triggering mechanism theory for the landslide was gathered at White Mountain.

This overview photo of the Halema‘uma‘u lava lake was captured around noon on Friday, October 15, 2021, from the northwest rim of the crater. The western fissure (lower right) continues to erupt lava into the west side of the lava lake (right). The east side of the lake (left) is mostly stagnated and solidified on the surface.

The Kīlauea summit eruption continues within Halema‘uma‘u, in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. This photo of the lava lake was taken this morning, October 15, 2021, during a Hawaiian Volcano Observatory eruption overflight. The vent in the western crater wall (center) continues to supply lava into the lava lake.

The eruption within Halema‘uma‘u continues. Lava fountaining from the western vent (center) feeds a rising lava lake. Activity has decreased over the past week and much of the eastern half of the lake surface (seen here in the foreground) has cooled and formed a solid crust.

A close-up view of the west vent on the western crater wall of Halema‘uma‘u, at Kīlauea summit. Fountaining and lava spatter has built a cone around the vent. Lava pools in the cone and then pours into the lava lake through a small spillway. This photo was taken during a monitoring helicopter overflight on October 15, 2021. USGS photo by N. Deligne.

In this photo taken during a helicopter overflight of Halema‘uma‘u crater on October 15, lava can be seen fountaining within the western vent cone and flowing down a short spillway into the lava lake. The main island created in the initial stages of the Dec. 2020–May 2021 eruption is in the foreground and continues to rise with the lake surface.

A telephoto view of the west vent supplying lava to the lava lake in Halema‘uma‘u, at Kīlauea summit. In the bottom right, the western fissure complex from the Dec. 2020–May 2021 eruption is visible as a spiny dull dark brown and red feature.