(BIVN) – Following the 12-hours of lava fountaining that took place on August 23, scientists say another event in the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption is likely to occurr in the coming weeks, continuing the episodic pattern that has been in place since December 2024. 

“The rapid rebound of tilt, weak glow, and seismicity characteristic of gas pistoning all indicate another episode of fountaining is likely, but not until the first week of September or later,” the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reported on Sunday. 

On deformation, the USGS reported:

The Uēkahuna tiltmeter (UWD) recorded about 22 microradians of deflationary tilt during this episode. The end of the eruption was coincident with a rapid change from deflation to inflation at the summit and a decrease in seismic tremor intensity. The Uēkahuna tiltmeter (UWD) has recorded approximately 5.8 microradians of inflationary tilt since the episode ended. Patterns of tremor indicate that gas pistoning is probably occurring deeper within the vent and is marked by low frequency bursts every 2-4 minutes.

USGS webcam shows the Kīlauea summit vent on Monday morning

All current eruptive activity has been confined to the summit caldera within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. 

The USGS Volcano Alert Level for Kīlauea remains at WATCH.