(BIVN) – Lava began overflowing the south vent at the Kilauea volcano summit Thursday morning, marking the start of precursory activity leading to episode 47 in Halemaʻumaʻu crater.
The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory says further dome fountains and overflows are likely to precede the onset of fountaining in the episodic eruption. As of 7 a.m., there have been six overflows from the south vent.
All activity has been confined to the summit caldera within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, although tephra from the eruption has been an issue for nearby communities during recent episodes. This morning, the Observatory wrote:
A combination of lava fountaining dynamics and wind conditions determines where tephra fall may occur during an eruptive episode. Larger particles fall near the vents while light particles may be wafted greater distances. The National Weather Service forecast for Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park over the next two days indicates moderate winds (5 to 15 mph) out of the northeast, which would carry tephra to the southwest of the summit.
On Wednesday, the USGS Volcano Alert Level for Kīlauea was raised from ADVISORY to WATCH, and the Aviation Color Code from YELLOW to ORANGE, in anticipation of episode 47.
On Thursday morning, scientists reported steady summit inflation continues, and “since the end of lava fountaining episode 46, the Uēkahuna tiltmeter (UWD) has recorded approximately 15.4 microradians of inflationary tilt, exceeding the 14.0 microradians of deflationary tilt during episode 46.”
The Observatory also reports there is steady seismic tremor at the summit, “with a few small bursts in association with the observed south vent overflows in Halemaʻumaʻu.” Earthquake activity at the summit during and after episode 46 has been low, they noted.
Scientists say the onset of episode 47 lava fountaining is forecast for today, May 14, at any time.
