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Volcano Watch: Kilauea activity update for May 30, 2013

Why did the lava tube cross the road? This image shows the Peace Day lava tube coming down the pali in Royal Gardens subdivision. The lava tube parallels Ali`i avenue, shown by the straight line of warm temperatures that represent asphalt heated in the sun. At the intersection of Ali`i avenue and Paradise street, the lava tube makes a sharp turn west and crosses the intersection, and then turns sharply again downslope (towards the right side of the image). This tube feeds lava to the ocean entry and breakouts on the coastal plain. There is no active lava on the surface in this image - the warm surface temperatures are due to heating by the underlying lava tube. Thermal images such as this help HVO geologists map the lava tube system.Photo courtesy of USGS/HVO

Why did the lava tube cross the road? This image shows the Peace Day lava tube coming down the pali in Royal Gardens subdivision. The lava tube parallels Ali`i avenue, shown by the straight line of warm temperatures that represent asphalt heated in the sun. At the intersection of Ali`i avenue and Paradise street, the lava tube makes a sharp turn west and crosses the intersection, and then turns sharply again downslope (towards the right side of the image). This tube feeds lava to the ocean entry and breakouts on the coastal plain. There is no active lava on the surface in this image – the warm surface temperatures are due to heating by the underlying lava tube. Thermal images such as this help HVO geologists map the lava tube system.Photo courtesy of USGS/HVO

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Time-lapse movie of Halemaumau overlook vent

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Time-lapse thermal image movie of Halemaumau overlook vent

(Activity updates are written by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.)

A lava lake within the Halema`uma`u Overlook vent produced nighttime glow that was visible from the Jaggar Museum overlook and via HVO’s Webcam during the past week. The lava lake rose and fell between about 50 and 70 m (165–230 ft) below the crater floor, synchronously with cycles of deflation and inflation (DI events) at Kilauea’s summit.

On Kilauea’s East Rift Zone, breakouts from the Peace Day tube remain active on the pali and on the coastal plain. Small ocean entries are active on both sides of the Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park boundary. The Kahauale`a II flow, fed from a spatter cone on the northeast edge of Pu`u `O`o crater, continues to spread at the northern base of the Pu`u `O`o cone.

No earthquakes were reported felt in the past week across the Island of Hawaiʻi.

Visit the HVO Web site (http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov) for Kilauea, Mauna Loa, and Hualalai activity updates, recent volcano photos, recent earthquakes, and more; call (808) 967-8862 for a Kilauea summary; email questions toaskHVO@usgs.gov.

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Time-lapse multi-image movie of Pu‘u ‘O‘o Crater

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Time-lapse thermal image movie of Pu‘u ‘O‘o Crater

Small-scale map showing the active Peace Day flow, carrying lava to the ocean, and the active Kahaualeʻa 2 flow north of Puʻu ʻŌʻō, as of May 24, 2013. The Kahaualeʻa 2 flow started on May 6 and continues to spread slowly at the base of Puʻu ʻŌʻō Cone. Southeast of Puʻu ʻŌʻō, breakouts near the base of the pali crept beyond the western edge of the Peace Day flow, widening that flow field and crossing into the National Park. The eastern Peace Day flow margin may have also changed near the coastline and mid-way up the pali, where small breakouts have persisted for weeks, but these areas were not mapped recently. Older lava flows are labeled with the years in which they were active. Episodes 1–48b (1983–1986) are shown in gray; episodes 48c–49 (1986–1992) are pale yellow; episodes 50–55 (1992–2007) are tan; and episodes 58–60 (2007–2011) are pale orange. The Peace Day lava tube is shown by the yellow line. The Peace Day tube where it crosses the coastal plain is not obvious and has not been mapped. The contour interval for topographic lines shown on Puʻu ʻŌʻō is 5 m.

Small-scale map showing the active Peace Day flow, carrying lava to the ocean, and the active Kahaualeʻa 2 flow north of Puʻu ʻŌʻō, as of May 24, 2013. The Kahaualeʻa 2 flow started on May 6 and continues to spread slowly at the base of Puʻu ʻŌʻō Cone. Southeast of Puʻu ʻŌʻō, breakouts near the base of the pali crept beyond the western edge of the Peace Day flow, widening that flow field and crossing into the National Park. The eastern Peace Day flow margin may have also changed near the coastline and mid-way up the pali, where small breakouts have persisted for weeks, but these areas were not mapped recently. Older lava flows are labeled with the years in which they were active. Episodes 1–48b (1983–1986) are shown in gray; episodes 48c–49 (1986–1992) are pale yellow; episodes 50–55 (1992–2007) are tan; and episodes 58–60 (2007–2011) are pale orange. The Peace Day lava tube is shown by the yellow line. The Peace Day tube where it crosses the coastal plain is not obvious and has not been mapped. The contour interval for topographic lines shown on Puʻu ʻŌʻō is 5 m.

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