(BIVN) – The ongoing eruption at the summit of Kīlauea is paused, and there is some uncertainty in the forecast for the next eruptive episode.
Slow summit deflation began Wednesday morning and continued on Thursday, “increasing the forecast uncertainty and delaying the onset of the next episode”, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports.
Scientists also noted “a small, localized section of the western Halemaʻumaʻu crater floor close to the vents was actively subsiding” on Wednesday.
“This same area has been observed subsiding after other eruptive episodes and may even be related to a weakness in the older, deeper part of the crater fill,” the Observatory wrote on Thursday morning. “In order to better study the process, the V1cam may be aimed in this direction during daylight hours this week.”
Still, current forecast models suggest that lava fountaining episode 51 will occur sometime between July 8 and 15, scientists say.
“Moderate to bright glow remained visible from the south vent overnight, while flashes of glow and flames were intermittently visible from the north vent,” the Observatory reported. “Strong tremor bursts continue every 10-20 minutes. No earthquakes were located beneath Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera) in the past day.”
