(BIVN) – The ongoing eruption at the summit of Kīlauea remains paused, although some lava spatter was seen at a vent within Halemaʻumaʻu caldera overnight. 

“Weak spatter bursts began from the north vent just before 6:50 pm HST tonight,” the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory wrote in a short update on Sunday evening. “The spatter bursts occur every 1 to 5 minutes with a few stronger bursts during the past 20 minutes. Glow can also be seen from the north and south vents.” 

In a Sunday morning update, HVO scientists reported preliminary data indicated that the next eruptive episode, Episode 19, is “likely to start sometime in the next 3-6 days.” 

USGS webcam view of the Kīlauea summit vents on Monday morning

From the USGS HVO analysis on Sunday:

The current eruption has been characterized by episodic fountaining not seen in any of the other Halemaʻumaʻu eruptions since 2020. Fountains and lava flows have erupted from two vents that we refer to as the north vent and south vent. Each of the previous 18 fountaining episodes lasted from a few hours to over a week and have been accompanied by strong deflation of the summit region. Pauses between the fountaining episodes have been marked by an immediate change from deflation to inflation as the magma chamber recharges and repressurizes.

The rapid rebound of UWD and SDH from deflation to inflation at the end of episode 18 along with glow from the north and south vent suggest another episode is likely. The pattern of inflation and deflation changed during episode 17 and 18 making determining the likely window for the start of episode 19 fountaining more difficult. Preliminary data indicate that episode 19 is likely to start sometime in the next 3-6 days. As more data becomes available, the window will be adjusted.

The USGS Volcano Alert Level for Kīlauea remains at WATCH.