Hawaiian Volcano Update / Status Report
Tuesday, September 16 , 2014 9:32 AM est (Aus)
KILAUEA VOLCANO UPDATE:
Kilauea: (VNUM #332010)
19°25'16" N 155°17'13" W, Summit Elevation 4091 ft (1247 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: WARNING
Current Aviation Color Code: ORANGE
Activity Summary: Kīlauea continued to erupt at its summit and within the East Rift Zone, and gas emissions remained elevated. Summit inflation continued, with only slight fluctuations in lava level. At the middle East Rift Zone, the front of the June 27th flow continues to advance through forest near Kaohe Homesteads, and surface breakouts are also present closer to Puʻu ʻŌʻō.
MAUNA LOA VOLCANO:
Mauna Loa: (VNUM #332020)
19°28'30" N 155°36'29" W, Summit Elevation 13681 ft (4170 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: NORMAL
Current Aviation Color Code: GREEN
Seismicity continued to be slightly elevated; deformation patterns may suggest renewed inflation.
Monitoring data through the month of August 2014:
Seismicity: Seismicity at Mauna Loa remains elevated in several parts of the volcano. In early August a swarm of Deep (45-50 km) Long Period (DLP) earthquakes occurred under the volcano. It was the most numerous swarm of earthquakes in this region since a swarm of DLP earthquakes and deformation in 2004 and 2005. It is common at Mauna Loa and other volcanoes worldwide to associate deep magma intrusion with the occurrence of DLP earthquakes. Earthquake rates on the Upper Southwest Rift Zone (Sulfur Cone) and West Flank remain elevated, though similar to the past couple of months. Seismicity rates in the Mokuʻāweoweo Crater increased over previous months with at over 20 events in the past month at shallow (<2 km) depths. All earthquakes in the past month have been small relative to earthquake sequences observed before eruptions in 1975 and 1984.
Deformation: GPS data show a broad pattern of horizontal displacements suggesting renewed inflation, with the majority of the volume accumulating in a dike-like body beneath the caldera. InSAR is starting to show the double-lobed pattern typical of dike widening. Reinflation may have started in April or May of this year. Displacement rates in August were a little more than half those measured during the height of the 2002-2009 inflation in 2004-2005.
Gas: Instrumentation was not functional during the month of August.
Kilauea: (VNUM #332010)
19°25'16" N 155°17'13" W, Summit Elevation 4091 ft (1247 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: WARNING
Current Aviation Color Code: ORANGE
Activity Summary: Kīlauea continued to erupt at its summit and within the East Rift Zone, and gas emissions remained elevated. Summit inflation continued, with only slight fluctuations in lava level. At the middle East Rift Zone, the front of the June 27th flow continues to advance through forest near Kaohe Homesteads, and surface breakouts are also present closer to Puʻu ʻŌʻō.
MAUNA LOA VOLCANO:
Mauna Loa: (VNUM #332020)
19°28'30" N 155°36'29" W, Summit Elevation 13681 ft (4170 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: NORMAL
Current Aviation Color Code: GREEN
Seismicity continued to be slightly elevated; deformation patterns may suggest renewed inflation.
Monitoring data through the month of August 2014:
Seismicity: Seismicity at Mauna Loa remains elevated in several parts of the volcano. In early August a swarm of Deep (45-50 km) Long Period (DLP) earthquakes occurred under the volcano. It was the most numerous swarm of earthquakes in this region since a swarm of DLP earthquakes and deformation in 2004 and 2005. It is common at Mauna Loa and other volcanoes worldwide to associate deep magma intrusion with the occurrence of DLP earthquakes. Earthquake rates on the Upper Southwest Rift Zone (Sulfur Cone) and West Flank remain elevated, though similar to the past couple of months. Seismicity rates in the Mokuʻāweoweo Crater increased over previous months with at over 20 events in the past month at shallow (<2 km) depths. All earthquakes in the past month have been small relative to earthquake sequences observed before eruptions in 1975 and 1984.
Deformation: GPS data show a broad pattern of horizontal displacements suggesting renewed inflation, with the majority of the volume accumulating in a dike-like body beneath the caldera. InSAR is starting to show the double-lobed pattern typical of dike widening. Reinflation may have started in April or May of this year. Displacement rates in August were a little more than half those measured during the height of the 2002-2009 inflation in 2004-2005.
Gas: Instrumentation was not functional during the month of August.