September 27 was “a beautiful and clear day at the summit of Kīlauea,” USGS photo by K. Mulliken.

(BIVN) – The pond of water continues to rise in the collapsed Halemaʻumaʻu cater at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano.

“The pond is now about the size of a football field, including end zones — or about 110 m (360 ft) long and just over 50 m (164 ft) wide,” the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said on September 24. “When the water was first observed on July 25, 2019, the pond was less than 10 m (33 ft) wide.”

Recent laser rangefinder measurements indicate that the water – most likely groundwater – is now roughly 33 feet deep. How much deeper could it get?

USGS photo by S. Warren.

Scientists recently gathered measurements of the water table using the Keller Well, a deep borehole at the summit of Kīlauea. “They lowered a sensor into the well to measure the distance between the ground surface and the top of the water table, which was 505 m (1657 ft) below the ground surface” on September 24, USGS reported.

“Continued measurements at the Keller Well site provide important data on how the local water table is recharging the summit area following the 2018 collapse events,” USGS HVO wrote.

The Keller Well measurements suggest that the Halemaʻumaʻu hot pond could possibly rise another 65 m, or 210 feet, scientists say.

The temperatures of the Halemaʻumaʻu water pond have remained fairly consistent at 70 degrees Celsius (around 160 degrees Fahrenheit), USGS HVO says.