(BIVN) – The summit of Kīlauea volcano on Hawaiʻi island was quiet this morning, following the 8.5 hour lava eruption on July 15th.
USGS webcams are keeping an eye on the inactive vents. Low-frequency seismic pulsing related to gas piston activity in the north vent began at the conclusion of episode 51, and continues this morning. Scientists say this is typical during the onset of pauses between eruptive episodes.
The V1 camera is on a temporary assignment, watching an area that has displayed persistent subsidence after several fountain episodes.
Scientists flew over the summit area on Thursday, noting the entire western portion of the crater floor has been resurfaced with lava flows. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory says the brown-colored areas on the left side of the photograph are draped in tephra fallout from the lava fountaining.
During that same flight, one of the scientists snapped this photo of the main spatter cone from the September 1971 Southwest Rift Zone eruption. Most of the flow field is now obscured from view due to the blanket of tephra that extends across the region from the summit.
Since episode 51 ended, inflation has resumed at the summit, and has already recovered 4 microradians of tilt. This and other observations suggest another episode is likely, continuing the pattern that began with the December 2024 eruption.
For now, preliminary models indicate that the forecast window for episode 52 is between July 24 and August 3.
The USGS Volcano Alert Level for Kīlaiuea remains at ADVISORY and the Aviation Color Code is at YELLOW.
