Images

Pele's hair (thin strands of volcanic glass drawn out from molten lava) is abundant around Halema`uma`u Crater (Kīlauea, Hawaii). It originates from the active, spattering lava lake and in some areas, makes a nearly continuous carpet, highlighted here in the afternoon sun.

This thermal image looks northeast from Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, and shows how the subsurface lava tubes feeding the active breakouts on the Kahauale‘a 2 flow are clearly visible as lines of slightly higher temperatures on the surface.

Continuing the same trend of activity observed over the past few weeks, the active breakouts on the Kahauale‘a 2 flow are still slowly advancing into the forest northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, creating small vegetation fires.

This thermal image looks northeast from Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, and shows how the subsurface lava tubes feeding the active breakouts on the Kahauale‘a 2 flow are clearly visible as lines of slightly higher temperatures on the surface.

The popping and cracking of ice in lakes within the Newberry Volcano caldera is picked up by local seismic stations, such as Central Pumice Cone. The lake-ice quakes do not resemble standard volcanic low-frequency or high-frequency events and are sporadically observed in the winter at other ice-covered lakes in Yellowstone, Long Valley, and elsewhere.

The flow front of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow has cut a narrow swath through forest northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The narrow lobe at the front is now inactive, with the main area of surface flows about 2km (1.2 miles) behind the end of this lobe. Some of these surface flows are slowly expanding northward into the forest, creating vegetation fires.

This photo looks southwest, and shows Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The northeast spatter cone on the east rim of the crater is near the center of the photo, and is the vent area for the Kahauale‘a 2 flow.

This thermal image shows Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō (see visual photograph at left for equivalent view). Recently, the southeast and northeast spatter cones have produced small overflows out of the crater, shown clearly here by their warm temperatures.

The Kahauale‘a 2 flow remains active, and continues to slowly expand into the forest northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The photo shows the main area of vegetation fires, along the north margin of the flow. Mauna Loa can be seen in the distance in the upper right.

The flow front of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow has cut a narrow swath through forest northeast of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The narrow lobe at the front is now inactive, with the main area of surface flows about 2km (1.2 miles) behind the end of this lobe. Some of these surface flows are slowly expanding northward into the forest, creating vegetation fires.

This thermal image shows the front of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow. A narrow lobe at the very front is now inactive (evident by the slightly lower surface temperatures), while the main area of active surface flows (shown by white areas) are farther back from this leading edge.

This photo looks southwest, and shows Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The northeast spatter cone on the east rim of the crater is near the center of the photo, and is the vent area for the Kahauale‘a 2 flow.

This thermal image shows Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō (see visual photograph at left for equivalent view). Recently, the southeast and northeast spatter cones have produced small overflows out of the crater, shown clearly here by their warm temperatures.

It was remarkably clear during today's overflight of Kīlauea's east rift zone. This photo is taken from Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, and looks northwest. Mauna Kea is at the right, and Mauna Loa is at the left. In front of the summit of Mauna Loa, the degassing plume from the lava lake at Kīlauea's summit is rising vertically.

Lava erupted a few times from two different spatter cones on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's crater floor over the past few weeks. These show up as the lighter-colored flows on the near (southeast) flank of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The larger spatter cone to the right, with the obvious fume trace leading away from it to the right (marking the lava tube), is the source of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow.

Lava erupted a few times from two different spatter cones on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's crater floor over the past few weeks. These show up as the lighter-colored flows on the near (southeast) flank of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The larger spatter cone to the right, with the obvious fume trace leading away from it to the right (marking the lava tube), is the source of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow.

Incandescent skylights adorn the spatter cone and the lava tube in this close shot of the source for the Kahauale‘a 2 flow. The lighter-colored flows in the foreground are recent flows which broke out from the near side of the spatter cone. Webcams and other monitoring equipment dot the north rim of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō in the background.

The tip of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow was 7.3 km (4.5 miles) from Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō when mapped on November 21. Active breakouts were scattered all across the flow up to about 4 km back from the front.

Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō looms in the background in this photo taken from about 4 km (2.5 miles) away. The source of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow—a spatter cone at the northeast edge of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's crater floor—forms the knuckle-like bump just above the center of the photo. The Kahauale‘a 2 lava tube is marked by the fuming areas that extend to the right down the flank of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō.

Lava erupted a few times from two different spatter cones on Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō's crater floor over the past few weeks. These show up as the lighter-colored flows on the near (southeast) flank of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. The larger spatter cone to the right, with the obvious fume trace leading away from it to the right (marking the lava tube), is the source of the Kahauale‘a 2 flow.

Incandescent skylights adorn the spatter cone and the lava tube in this close shot of the source for the Kahauale‘a 2 flow. The lighter-colored flows in the foreground are recent flows which broke out from the near side of the spatter cone. Webcams and other monitoring equipment dot the north rim of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō in the background.