Activity Summary: Kīlauea volcano is not erupting. The upper East Rift Zone seismic swarm that began on June 27 abated yesterday morning, though earthquake counts remain above background levels, similar to before the swarm. Longer-term, gradual inflation of the summit and upper rift zones has persisted since the end of the June 3, 2024 eruption. Any substantial increases in seismicity and/or deformation could result in a new eruptive episode, but there are no signs of an imminent eruption at this time.
Summit and Upper Rift Zone Observations: There were approximately 70 earthquakes detected beneath the upper East Rift Zone over the past 24 hours, mostly at depths of 1-3 km (0.6-1.8 mi). This daily count is similar to those recorded prior to the June 27 swarm. In the past day, summit tiltmeters began tracking inflationary ground deformation after a multi-day pause: the UWE instrument northwest of the summit and the SDH instrument southwest of the summit respectively recorded approximately 7 and 3 microradians of inflationary tilt over the past 24 hours. GPS instruments around the summit region continue to show longer-term, gradual inflation since the end of the June 3, 2024 eruption. The most recent measurement of the summit's SO emission rate was approximately 75 tonnes per day on June 28, 2024.
Middle and Lower Rift Zone Observations: Rates of seismicity and ground deformation beneath the middle and lower East Rift Zone and lower Southwest Rift Zone remain low. Recent eruptive activity and ongoing unrest have been restricted to the summit and upper rift zone regions. Measurements from continuous gas monitoring stations downwind of Puʻuʻōʻō in the middle East Rift Zone -- the site of 1983-2018 eruptive activity -- remain below detection limits for SO, indicating that SO emissions from Puʻuʻōʻō are negligible.
Analysis: Following the eruption on June 3, 2024, magma has been repressurizing the storage system beneath Halemaʻumaʻu and the south caldera region, activating earthquakes in the caldera south of Halemaʻumaʻu and in the upper East Rift Zone. At this time, it is not possible to say whether this activity will lead to an intrusion or eruption in the near future, or simply continue as seismic unrest at depth. Changes in the character and location of unrest can occur quickly, as can the potential for eruption, but there are no signs of an imminent eruption at this time.
Updates: The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) will continue to provide daily updates for Kīlauea volcano. Should volcanic activity change significantly, a Volcanic Activity Notice will be issued.
Recent Eruption Information: Kīlauea erupted briefly on June 3, 2024, southwest of the summit region within a closed area of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. For more information about this eruption, see this webpage: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/science/june-2024-kilauea-southwest-rift-zone-eruption.
Monitoring Notices: This morning, computer specialists will be performing maintenance on seismic data servers, which will cause a brief temporary interruption in public data streams of seismic stations. This interruption is expected to begin around 11:00 a.m. HST and last for approximately 1 hour, but it will not affect HVO's ability to monitor Hawaii's volcanoes.
Also this morning, technicians are planning to re-level the UWE tiltmeter located near Uēkahuna bluff in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. This work is the result of the instrument approaching the edge of its scale range, having recorded over 300 microradians of deformation since it was last re-leveled in August 2018. Subsequent data will likely be temporarily offset from the pre-releveling tilt trend. Additionally, the instrument will need time to settle from physical disturbance during the manual re-leveling, a process that may last several weeks. While it settles, UWE tilt data will remain qualitatively useful, providing indications of short-term volcanic processes, such as magma ascent at the onset of an eruption or intrusion. The offset will eventually be corrected with manual adjustments to better align the new data to old trends, providing a better, long-term representation of tilt deformation.
Hazards: Hazards remain around Kīlauea caldera from Halemaʻumaʻu crater wall instability, ground cracking, and rockfalls that can be enhanced by earthquakes within the area closed to the public. This underscores the extremely hazardous nature of the rim surrounding Halemaʻumaʻu crater, an area that has been closed to the public since early 2008.
Near the recent Southwest Rift Zone eruption site, minor to severe ground fractures and subsidence features may continue to widen and offset, may have unstable overhanging edges, and should be avoided. Hazards associated with the recent lava flows include glassy (sharp) surfaces that can cause serious abrasions, and lacerations upon contact with unprotected or exposed skin; uneven and rough terrain that can lead to falls and other injuries; or, locally elevated levels of volcanic gases that can lead to breathing difficulty.
For discussion of Kīlauea hazards, please see: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hawaiian-volcano-observatory/hazards.
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) continues to closely monitor Kīlauea Volcano.
Please see the Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park website for visitor information: https://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm.