What happened at Halemaumau
Lava fountaining resumed at the summit of Kilauea on Hawaii island early Saturday and stopped abruptly a little under six hours later, according to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. The U.S. Geological Survey scientists said the activity began at 3:19 a.m. and ended at 9:03 a.m. in Halemaumau crater.
The episode is the 55th burst of fountaining in the current eruption, as reported by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. It was the first return of fountaining to the crater since Aug. 25.
The observatory said a large fountain came from the north vent inside the crater. It reached its greatest height, 720 feet, at about 5 a.m.
Plume, ash and wind
Observatory scientists said the eruption cloud climbed to roughly 25,000 feet above sea level. In a news release, officials said winds were blowing from the north-northeast. That pattern suggested volcanic gas and other material could drift toward the south-southwest of the crater.
The release also said radar images showed significant tephra within the plume only up to 8,000 above sea level, a much lower level than the top of the cloud.
Scientists said most of the tephra, the fragments of volcanic material thrown out during an eruption, fell within about 3 miles of the vents. Lighter ash and strands of volcanic glass known as Pele's Hair can stay suspended in the air and travel farther, they added.
A pause and a shift beneath the summit
The eruption began on Dec. 23, 2024, and has alternated between active and quiet periods. For much of that time, fountaining came at regular intervals of a few weeks, with the previous episode on Aug. 25.
That rhythm changed after the late-August episode. According to the observatory, magma beneath the summit shifted, and in mid-September several new vents opened near the northwest wall of Halemaumau. They produced small lava flows on the crater floor but no high fountaining.
FOX Weather described Saturday's episode as following a rare two-month pause. Big Island Video News, in a separate item listed alongside the Star-Advertiser report, noted that scientists have been examining the fissures that erupted in September.
What scientists expect next
As in each of the previous 54 episodes, the observatory said all eruptive vents and lava flows remain within Halemaumau crater. The source material does not describe any threat from lava to communities.
Scientists said they consider it unlikely that fountaining will return to the crater over the next few weeks. The observatory continues to monitor the volcano, and the source does not say what the September vents might mean for future episodes.
