By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

[Video courtesy USGS-Hawaiian Volcano Observatory]

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK, Hawaii: January is Volcano Awareness Month on Hawaii Island and 2012 also marks the 100th anniversary of the U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

So why not share some of the latest mesmerizing lava lake video, from the fiery pit of Halemau’ma’u on the summit of Kilauea.

This footage shows vigorous spattering along the south margin of the Halema`uma`u lava lake. Lava is upwelling in the northern portion of the lake which is out of view, and slowly migrates to this southern margin where it sinks back into the conduit.

According to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory’s Kilauea status report for Thursday the spattering sink on the southeastern edge of lake continued building a small spatter rampart and feeding very small lava flows on the inner ledge. The lava level is estimated to be 260 feet below the floor of Halema`uma`u Crater.

The HVO also says the most recent sulfur dioxide emission rate measurement was 1,500 tonnes per day on January 22… new measurements must await the return of moderate trade winds, scientists say.

By Daryl Lee, Dave Corrigan, and Stephanie Salazar

[Video by Daryl Lee]

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Hawaii: A bad accident to report in Mountain View, and Big Island Video News has the video of the tense rescue.

This collision on Route 11 near the 13th mile marker shut the highway around 10 in the morning on Thursday, as vehicles were detoured around the scene.

You can see fire and rescue crews working hard to save a woman, who was stuck in her sedan after a reported head on collision with a dump truck.

The woman was pinned under the vehicle, and firefighters used the jaws of life to successfully extricate her. She was reportedly taken to Hilo Medical Center in critical condition.

Meanwhile, the dump truck that was involved in the crash was fully engulfed in flames, and Hawaii County fire crews worked to hose it down.

The dump truck lost a wheel in the crash and firefighters believe the sparks from the metal may have ignited the fuel line.

Fire officials report that the effort to extinguish the fire was delayed because there were live electrical wires on the ground.

The driver of the dump truck was not hurt, but his truck was destroyed, amounting to a loss of $100,000, according to a fire news dispatch.

Hazmat crews provided information to the trucking company for containment and cleanup of spilled diesel fuel and oil.

After the accident was cleared, state highway crews performed a clean up of the roadway.

The road was eventually re-opened.

By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

[Video by David Corrigan]

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK, Hawaii: Sunday’s series of minor earthquakes happened in roughly the same region where the day before, some of the United State’s Geological Survey’s top scientists were gathered in celebration.

This weekend was the official open house in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

Thomas A. Jaggar, Jr., arrived on Kilauea and took over the continuous study of Hawaii’s active volcanoes on January 17, 1912 — the date is often noted as the founding of HVO, America’s first volcano observatory.

Located on the rim of the Kīlauea Volcano’s summit caldera next to Jaggar Museum in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, the observatory is usually closed to the public.

But on January 21, the observatory was open for public tours, with special exhibits and demonstrations. The National Park Service granted free admission to the park in honor of the obervatory’s centennial.

Strong wind gusts blustered during the opening remarks, as dignitaries from across the country paid homage to the work done by observatory geologists, past and present…

Then, once the maile lei was untied, it was time for the tour.

Scientists showed the public around the numerous rooms where computers and seismic equipment monitor the active volcano every minute of the day.

The public even got a chance to see the view from above… a look out over the caldera from the observation tower.

The U.S. Department of the Interior Assistant Secretary for Water & Science, Anne Castle, was on hand for the day’s events. She spoke to Big Island Video News about the important resource that is the observatory.

It wasnt just scientists and curious adults getting into the centennial spirit. An HVO hosted a poster contest for Hawaii Island 4th grade students was also held. The Grand Prize poster, rendered by Waiakeawaena Elementary School student Jyron Young, as well as other winning posters were displayed at HVO’s open house. Winning students were also honored on the same day, and given prizes for their work. All posters entered in the contest will be displayed at KTA stores in Hilo, Kamuela, and Kailua until February 10.

By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

[Video courtesy Lava Ocean Adventures and Ken Haller]

ROYAL GARDENS, Hawaii: With the latest lava flow through the Royal Gardens, all eyes are once again on the subdivision’s last remaining resident.

Jack Thompson operates the Lava House bed and breakfast from his home, which somehow still stands while the rest of surrounding neighborhood has been buried in lava.

Its no easy task getting to his house when most roads in and out of the area have been decimated,

Tourist helicopters often drop visitors off at his place for a look around…

… and sometimes, Thompson hitches a ride to town on a helicopter himself…

Now it looks like the county is getting a little more strict on this practise.

Peter Sur of the Hawaii Tribune-Herald recently reported that the County Planning Department is asking to Thompson to do an environmental assessment in order for him to obtain a permitted landing area on his property.

An environmental assessment is an expensive and time consuming process.

Apparently, the bed and breakfast that Thompson has operated for years is also not permitted, according to the county.

According to the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, a minor earthquake occurred at 1:03 p.m. today (Saturday, December 10, 2011) on Hawaii Island.

The magnitude 3.7 event occurred 4 miles south southeast of the Kilauea volcano summit, 5 miles south southwest of Volcano Village.

The hypocentral depth was 16 miles.

For more info, visit the USGS event page for this earthquake.

By David Corrigan, Leigh Hilbert, and Stephanie Salazar

[Video by Liegh Hilbert, Hawaiian Lava Daily and Bo Lozoff, Lava Lover Bo]

ROYAL GARDENS, Hawaii: Rushing lava from the East Rift Zone of Kilauea volcano has returned to the Royal Gardens subdivision, and already the intrepid lava lovers are making the dangerous hike to witness the spectacle.

Folks like Bo Lozoff, who lives in Kalapana Gardens – no stranger to the many lava flows that come down the pali over the years – who shot this video from the desolate and devastated neighborhood.

If it look like this lava fanatic has been missing his up close encounters with lava, that’s probably true… there hasn’t been an active lava flow on the coastal plain since the Kamoamoa fissure eruption in March 2011.

Leigh Hilbert, a professional lava photographer who has shared some of the most remarkable images of last year’s Kalapana flow, was also on hand… he says rivers of lava have already severed access to the remaining kipuka, and to Jack Thompson’s home – the famous Lava House bed and breakfast and the last inhabited home remaining in Royal Gardens.

Hilberts says a chopper came to take Jack off his property and out of the lava zone at 5:30 PM Sunday.

Later news reports said Thompson was simply hitching a ride to a dentist appointment.

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists continue to monitor the activity. The following is from the daily Kilauea activity report, updated at least every 24 hours:

Lava continued to erupt into the perched pond in the east part of the Pu`u `O`o crater until just past midnight, shortly after the tiltmeter on the north flank showed a small deflation trend; the tilt is relatively flat this morning and is not following the DI pattern recorded at the summit. Lava continues to enter the tube system on the northeast flank of Pu`u `O`o; the tube system turns to the southeast 0.5 km and again at 2 km downslope. Seismic tremor levels near Pu`u `O`o were low. The most recent (preliminary) sulfur dioxide emission rate measurement was 500 tonnes/day on December 6, 2011, from all east rift zone sources.

Glow from the fissure and a skylight on the southeast flank of Pu`u `O`o continued to be visible in webcam views.

A new webcam on the coastal plain (not avialable on the public Web site) shows that lava flows are active this morning through the abandoned Royal Gardens subdivision 6.8 km (4.2 mi) southeast of Pu`u `O`o and on the coastal plain. The flows advanced about 0.6 km from the base of the pali by yesterday mid-morning, and they continued advancing overnight.

By David Corrigan and Tim Bryan

[File video by David Corrigan]

VOLCANO VILLAGE, Hawaii: The organizers behind the proposed Volcano Project, hoping to win the concession of the coveted Volcano House within the National Park, are pressing supporters to make their voices known to the decision makers.

David Howard Donald & Anne Lee have a unique plan for the currently inactive institution. They spoke to the community about thier plan in 2009.

Judging of their proposal started on Monday Nov. 14 and will continue until Nov. 18th

They are hoping supporters will call or email the Department of the Interior & National Park Service, or United States Senate Subcommittee on National Parks

The National Park Service issued the Prospectus for the Volcano House operation on December 10, 2009, requesting proposals for visitor services that included: overnight accommodations, food, beverage, retail, campground and related services. Due to several amendments, the closing date was extended to September 1, 2010.

After a review, officials decided to re-solicit the concession prospectus because the proposals received did not meet critical requirements for the concession contract. All proposals received in response to this solicitation were considered non-responsive and/or not qualified.

The following is a Volcano Watch article courtesy the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory:

With the 100th anniversary of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory fast approaching, many scientists at the observatory are thinking about how the current activity compares with what the first scientists at HVO were observing in the early 1900s.

Perhaps most notable is the Halema`uma`u lava lake, highly active today, just as it was a hundred years ago. But how different is the current lava lake in Halema`uma`u from the earlier lakes?

Through much of the 1800s and into the early 1900s, Halema`uma`u had an active lava lake. This was the lava lake visited and described so eloquently by Mark Twain and subsequently monitored by Frank Perret and Thomas Jaggar in the early days of HVO. During this phase of continuous activity, lava drained from Halema`uma`u, triggering explosions in 1924.

In 2008, a new vent opened in Halema`uma`u and the current eruption began. Now, a lava lake resides about 100 m (330 ft) deep within the vent and is continuously churning away.

Let’s start the comparison with the basic geometry of the vents. In the early 1900s, the lava lake was in a relatively wide crater (diameter of 400 m, or 1,300 ft), easily seen and even approached by ladder and ledges. Today, the lava lake resides in a much narrower (150 m, or 490 ft wide) pit and is rarely shallow enough for good, extended viewing from the crater’s rim.

The geometry of the lake itself is also much different. The current lava lake normally consists of a single, nearly circular body of lava, with one primary flow direction. The lava lake in the early 1900s, however, was often much more complex, with subordinate ponds, islands, and narrow channels feeding into embayments.

Lava level is another important comparison. In the early 1900s, it fluctuated over a wide range but, overall, was about 100-150 m (330-490 ft) higher than it is today. In 1919, for instance, lava spilled out of the crater and covered much of the caldera floor.

Lava level fluctuations are also common. Today we see long-term (days-to-weeks) fluctuations due to changes in the east rift zone eruption. For example, the opening of the Kamoamoa vents in March 2011 briefly drained the Halema`uma`u lava lake. In the early 1900s, the lava level also fluctuated due to activity elsewhere on the volcano.

The current lava lake activity has been accompanied by a series of small explosive events. There is no record of explosive activity within the Halema`uma`u lava lake prior to the 1924 explosions.

Gas emission is something that the current and old lava lakes share. Photos from the early 1900s show the same robust white plume that we see today, carried by the trade winds to the southwest. A visitor in the 1800s described “suffocating fumes of sulphuric acid gas.” Presumably, vog was a problem in west Hawai`i in the past, as well.

What can we learn from these comparisons? The complex geometry of the early lava lake may simply be due to its long history of activity, compared to the present lake, with decades to build up and modify the vent area. The lower lava level today can be attributed to the long-lived eruption on the east rift zone that is continuously tapping the summit magma chamber. That both the new and old lava lakes experience fluctuations correlated with rift activity reinforces the notion that Halema`uma`u’s lava lake is a sensitive pressure gauge of the summit magma chamber.

The lack of explosions in the early lake is probably due to the absence of towering, overhanging rock walls—as there are today—that could collapse into the lake. The recent explosions, we believe, are due to collapses of the vent wall impacting the lake surface and triggering violent degassing.

The emission of copious amounts of gas by lava lakes, past and present, is easy to understand. Continuously active lava lakes are sustained by a process called magmatic convection, which is driven by the persistent supply of gas-rich magma from depth.

As we approach HVO’s 100 year anniversary, Halema`uma`u reminds us that scientists have been perched on the caldera rim, observing and pondering the mysteries of Kilauea’s activity, for over a century.

Photo caption: Photo of the lava lake within the vent inset within the east wall and floor of Halema`uma`u Crater on March 3, 2011, just days before the Kamoamoa fissure eruption caused the lake level to drop much deeper and out of sight.

Kilauea activity update

A lava lake was present within the Halema`uma`u Overlook vent over the past week, resulting in night-time glow that was visible from the Jaggar Museum overlook. The lake, which is about 100 m (330 ft) below the floor of Halema`uma`u and visible by Webcam, rose and fell slightly during the week in response to back-to-back deflation-inflation cycles.

Eruptive activity on Kilauea’s east rift zone was restricted to surface flows about 4.1 km (2.5 miles) east-southeast of Pu`u `O`o. These flows travel through a lava tube that is fed by the September 21 fissure on the upper east flank of the Pu`u `O`o cone.

Two earthquakes beneath Hawai`i Island were reported felt this past week. A magnitude-2.6 earthquake occurred at 4:34 p.m. HST on Saturday, November 5, 2011, and was located 9 km (6 mi) east of Waiki`i at a depth of 21 km (13 mi). A magnitude-3.9 earthquake occurred at 1:46 a.m. Monday, November 7, and was located 6 km (4 mi) east of `Opihikao at a depth of 45 km (28 mi).

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

Volcano Watch is a weekly article and activity update written by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

[Video by David Corrigan]

HILO, Hawaii: The Volcano Art Center’s first Dia de los Muertos series of events wraps up tonight at the Niaulani Campus in Volcano Village.

This video was taken on Tuesday night, just before sundown in Hilo, where a related candelight procession marched through Downtown Hilo, returning to the East Hawaii Cultural Center by night.

Participants were encouraged to wear their finest, most creative skeleton masks or face paint and attire.

There was also a shrine illumination.

But tonight, the community gathers for an art and fiesta event, at he location of a Grievin’ and Groovin Art Exhibit at the Hale Ho’omana Educational Facility at the art center.

It will be the culmination of a two-day celebration honoring our beloved departed… this exhibit will represent art work, writing, movement and rituals based on the subject of death, loss, mortality and the passage of time.

Based on the actual dates of the traditional cultural celebration, it will close in a fiesta celebration on the evening of the second day.

Dia de los Muertos, or “The Day of the Dead,” is a traditional Mexican celebration that focuses on the remembrance of loved ones who have passed away.

By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK, Hawaii: The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park’s annual film festival called “DIGITAL MOUNTAIN: IT’S MY TRAIL” wrapped up on Saturday, and this year’s winners were named at the evening finale event, according to the Ka’u Calendar.

This year’s grand prize – for the second straight year – went to Kukui Keliihoomalu for his film called “It’s My Trail”.

In it, he interviews his grandfather Robert Keliihoomalu about the family tradition of fishing, collecting limu and `opihi, and hunting wild goat and fishing along the Kalapana coast and taking the Apua Point Trail which ended at Queens Bath.

Kukui received a high-definition digital camera.

Other winners: First place went to Aiyana Wessels for the film entitled “It’s My Trail and Now It’s Yours“ … secong place went to Pua Swift, who focused on Devastation Trail. Third plave was Briana Tucker-Archie for a film on Kilauea Iki Trail called “Just for A While”.

By David Corrigan and Stephanie Salazar

[File Video]

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK, Hawaii: Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park will temporarily close several roads and parking lots at popular trailheads and attractions during the current thoroughfare improvement project.

Park officials say Hilina Pali Road will be closed to traffic during the day on Thurs., Oct.27 and Fri., Oct. 28.

Hikers wanting access to backcountry trails and campsites including Halapē are encouraged to use other routes, such as Mau Loa o Mauna Ulu, or get their backcountry permits a day early at the Kīlauea Visitor Center and plan on a sunrise departure.

The following parking lots within the national park will be partially or temporarily closed next week:

Devastation Trail parking lot will be closed Tues., Nov. 1 and the Pu‘u Pua‘i parking lot will be closed Wed., Nov. 2. However, visitors can still hike Devastation Trail between the two parking lots and observe the fascinating features of the 1959 Kīlauea Iki eruption and Pu‘u Pua‘i cindercone.

Thurston Lava Tube (Nāhuku) and Kīlauea Iki parking lots will have limited accessibility on Thurs., Nov. 3. Thurston Lava Tube’s parking area will be closed in the morning while road crews patch the pavement and seal cracks, but will reopen in the early afternoon. One of the two Kīlauea Iki parking lot entrances will be closed at a time while crews improve the area, but limited parking will be available.

In addition, work continues on Crater Rim Drive, the bike trail and pedestrian paths near Steam Vents and Sulphur Banks, and the sidewalks at Kīlauea Visitor Center. All remain open, however the public should expect
15-minute delays in construction areas.

KULANI, Hawaii: There are a few items on Friday’s land board agenda dealing with the former Correctional Facility located far from town at the end of Stainback Highway.

In 2009, an outgoing Governor Linda Lingle made the sudden decision to close the prison, citing high operating costs, and instead turned the facility over to the state Department of Defense to operate a Hawaii National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Academy for at-risk youth.

Advocates for the prison – and employees – protested the decision…

But ultimately, the deal went through. The Youth ChalleNGe Academy took over, and Lingle herself was onhand for the re-dedication of Kulani for the new program. The first class of cadets began in January and graduated in June. The second class is now underway.

But now Lingle is out… seeking higher office at the U.S. Senate.. and lawmakers are looking to reverse the decision. The state’s Public Safety Director has requested that the 622 acres return to use as a prison. The state legislature has paased a resolution urging the return of the prison at the Kulani.

The Youth ChalleNGe Academy will need to fins a new home… the new Keaukaha Military Reservation near Hilo International Airport is the most likely candidate. And the governor will have to sign an executive order to re-establish the prison under public safety.

At Friday’s land board hearing, the Department of Defense will be looking to get a temportary permit to continue operating at the facility until it can find a new home. Other forms of military use will remain prohibited. Military officials say that they, too, have found operating at the facility to be too costly.

The DLNR is also recommending to the board that the Division of Forestry and Wildlife be granted a right of entry to gather data on the 340 acres outside the 279 being used by the Youth ChalleNGe.

The board will also decide on whether or not to grant a contested case hearing to three different organizations who are against the current use of the Kulani facility. DLNR staff says the Community Alliance on Prisons, DMZ-Hawaii / Aloha Aina, and Michael Kumukauoha Lee all lack standing in the matter, and should be denied a contested case hearing.