It ended the eruption from the Puʻuʻōʻō vent, the longest-running eruption in the world. That eruption began a brand-new lava lake and continued up until May 2021.
The Lower East Rift Zone (LERZ) eruption at Kīlauea, which began on May 3, 2018, destroyed 700 buildings and required thousands of homeowners to leave. By contrast, the eruption from the Puʻuʻōʻō vent on the Middle East Rift Zone– which began in 1983 and continued for 35 years– produced an overall of 4.4 cubic kilometers (1.1 cubic miles) of lava and ruined 215 structures.
The 2018 LERZ eruption likewise significantly altered the volcanos lava pipes system. It ended the eruption from the Puʻuʻōʻō vent, the longest-running eruption on the planet. And it collapsed the floor of the Halemaumau top crater, reducing it by more than 500 meters (1,600 feet) and draining pipes the lava lake that had actually pooled in the top crater since 2008.
The lava lake was changed by a water lake in July 2019, an event unprecedented in the historic record. Over the next year and a half, water slowly filled the crater to a depth of about 50 meters (160 feet).
The water lake was of special interest to scientists because Kīlauea has an unusual history of both effusive and explosive eruptions. The latter are generally more damaging and violent, and they are typically driven by the interaction of lava with water– a truth that kept volcano observers extra mindful to activity. Nevertheless, in December 2020, a brand-new phase of eruptive activity started with an influx of lava into the crater that boiled off the water lake in a couple of hours. That eruption began a brand-new lava lake and continued up until May 2021. The most current eruption started in September 2021 and continues today.
The image above was gotten on April 15, 2022, by the Operational Land Imager-2 (OLI-2) on Landsat 9. The image consists of a mix of visible and infrared light (bands 6-5-3), which helps identify the heat signature of the lava.
NASA Earth Observatory image by Lauren Dauphin, using Landsat information from the U.S. Geological Survey.
By Sara E. Pratt, NASA Earth Observatory
May 13, 2022
April 15, 2022
Considering that May 2018, when Kīlaueas lava lake last drained, the top crater has filled with water, emerged once again, boiled off the water, and refilled with lava.
Four years ago this month, Hawaiīs youngest and most active volcano released its biggest eruption in at least 200 years. The Lower East Rift Zone (LERZ) eruption at Kīlauea, which started on May 3, 2018, destroyed 700 structures and required thousands of locals to evacuate. Researchers are still studying the eruption and its effects.
The 2018 eruption was considerable on a worldwide scale, not just for Hawaiī. Kīlauea emitted approximately 1.4 cubic kilometers (about 0.34 cubic miles) of lava in just 4 months. By contrast, the eruption from the Puʻuʻōʻō vent on the Middle East Rift Zone– which began in 1983 and continued for 35 years– emitted a total of 4.4 cubic kilometers (1.1 cubic miles) of lava and ruined 215 structures.
