(BIVN) – Kīlauea is not erupting, and earthquake activity in the Hawaiʻi island volcano’s upper East Rift Zone has decreased over the last 24 hours. 

The USGS Volcano Alert Level for Kīlauea remains at ADVISORY. There are no significant changes in activity in the lower East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.

“Changes in the character and location of unrest can occur quickly, as can the potential for eruption, but there are no signs of imminent eruption at this time,” the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory wrote in a Monday update.

From the USGS HVO udpate posted on Monday morning:

Summit Observations: Approximately 7 earthquakes were detected beneath Kaluapele (Kīlauea’s summit caldera) over the past 24 hours at depths of 1–3 km (0.6–1.9 mi) below the ground surface, most with magnitudes of less than M2.0. Rates of deformation at the summit remained relatively low, with slightly fluctuating tilt at summit tiltmeters over the past day. An overall gradual inflationary trend has been measured by GPS instruments around the summit region in recent months. The most recent measurement of the summit’s SO2 emission rate was approximately 75 tonnes per day on August 20, 2024.

Above Top: Number of earthquakes per day during the past week (blue bars). The red line is the cumulative moment (energy) release. Bottom: Depth of earthquakes during the past week in the area shown on the map above. Depth is reported relative to sea level, which is equal to a depth of zero on the above plot. On both figures, circle-size represents magnitude, and color indicates depth. (USGS graphs)

Rift Zone Observations: Over the past 24 hours, there have been approximately 5 earthquakes beneath Kīlauea’s UERZ region, extending from Puhimau Crater southeast to Maunaulu, a decrease from yesterday. Most earthquakes have been smaller than M2.0. Events have remained at depths of 1–3 km (0.6–1.8 miles) beneath the surface. Currently, deformation remains stable over the past 24 hours.

Activity in the middle East Rift Zone (MERZ) remains low. There were no significant changes in the POC tiltmeter over the past day. GPS instruments have recorded overall inflation in the region over the past month.

Measurements from continuous gas monitoring stations downwind of Puʻuʻōʻō in the middle East Rift Zone—the site of 1983–2018 eruptive activity—remain below detection limits for SO2, indicating that SO2 emissions from this area are negligible.

At this time, there is no evidence of elevated seismicity or ground deformation beneath the lower East Rift Zone, and Southwest Rift Zone activity remains low. Current activity is restricted to the summit and upper East Rift Zone region.

Analysis: Recent UERZ unrest may represent pulses of magma being supplied to the UERZ. An intrusive event occurred near Pauahi Crater over July 22–25, 2024, and another intrusive event happened near the same vicinity on August 20, 2024. Currently, the MERZ has not shown signs of increased unrest; however, magma has recently re-established a path to Kīlauea’s MERZ. Unrest could potentially extend to the MERZ with continued magma supply.