Volcano Updates for social media from the U.S.G.S. Volcano Hazards Program https://www.usgs.gov/programs/VHP/volcano-updates U.S. Geological Survey Volcano Hazards Program Sun, 20 Sep 2026 19:15:05 +0000 Sep 20, 2026 18:39 - Volcano Observatory Notice for Aviation (VONA) and associated Volcano Activity Notices (VAN) are now required to be repeated every day for volcanoes at RED, every week for volcanoes at ORANGE, and every two weeks for volcanoes at YELLOW.The Halemaʻumaʻu eruption of Kīlauea volcano is currently paused, current forecast for episode XX fountaining onset is MONTH XX-XX. Episode XX fountaining ended at XX a.m./ p.m. HST on DAY MONTH XX, YEAR.All eruptive vents and lava flows are confined to Halemaʻumaʻu crater within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Tephra fall from ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-20T18:06:49+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-20T18:06:49+00:00 19.421 -155.287 WATCH ORANGE Sep 18, 2026 07:03 - On Thursday, September 17 at 8:36 p.m. HST, a magnitude-4.1 earthquake occurred 3 mi (5 km) south of Pāhala on the Island of Hawaiʻi at a depth of 8 mi (12 km) below sea level. The earthquake had no apparent impact on either Mauna Loa or Kīlauea volcanoes.The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory continues to monitor Hawaiian volcanoes for any changes.EARTHQUAKE DESCRIPTIONMagnitude: 4.1Date and Time: September 17, 2026, at 8:36 p.m. HST  Location: 3 mi (5 km) S of Pāhala, Island of Hawaiʻi   Depth: 8 mi (12 km) below sea level Aftershocks are possible in the ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-18T06:56:18+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-18T06:56:19+00:00 19.7220 -155.0707 Sep 16, 2026 00:11 - Eruption History: There have been 54 episodes of lava fountaining since the Halemaʻumaʻu eruption began in late December 2024 at the summit of Kīlauea. Each episode was preceded by a period of summit inflation as magma accumulated in the shallow chamber beneath Halemaʻumaʻu followed by rapid summit deflation during lava fountaining. New fountaining episodes usually occur when inflation recovers the amount lost in the previous fountaining episode indicating the system has repressurized.  This repeating pattern coupled with uniform inflation as measured on summit ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-15T03:18:09+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-15T03:18:09+00:00 19.421 -155.287 WATCH ORANGE Sep 13, 2026 18:33 - On Sunday, September 13, 8:00 a.m. HST, a magnitude-4.0 earthquake occurred 2 mi (4 km) south of Pāhala on the Island of Hawaiʻi at a depth of 8 mi (13 km) below sea level. The earthquake had no apparent impact on either Mauna Loa or Kīlauea volcanoes. This earthquake occurred near the long-term seismic swarm under the Pāhala area, which has been going on since 2019. Earthquakes in this region have been observed at least as far back as the 1960s. See https://www.usgs.gov/news/volcano-watch-why-do-so-many-deep-earthquakes-happen-around-pahala for more information. The ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-13T18:25:16+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-13T18:25:16+00:00 19.7220 -155.0707 Sep 8, 2026 22:31 - [CORRECTED] The number of earthquakes, intensity of steam emissions, and measured sulfur dioxide emissions beneath Mount Kupreanof have declined. Due to these changes, the Alaska Volcano Observatory is lowering the Aviation Color Code and the Volcano Alert Level to UNASSIGNED. Summary of activity and hazards Seismicity was first detected in February 2026 and increased over the following months, with earthquakes as large as magnitude 3.1 recorded. However, seismicity has declined over the past month.Sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions were detected beginning on April 4 with ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-09-08T22:30:01+00:00 DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-09-08T22:30:01+00:00 56.0126 -159.7912 UNASSIGNED UNASSIGNED Sep 8, 2026 22:20 - The number of earthquakes, intensity of steam emissions, and measured sulfur dioxide emissions beneath Mount Kupreanof have declined. Due to these changes, the Alaska Volcano Observatory is lowering the Aviation Color Code and the Volcano Alert Level to UNASSIGNED. Summary of activity and hazards Seismicity was first detected in February 2026 and increased over the following months, with earthquakes as large as magnitude 3.1 recorded. However, seismicity has declined over the past month.Sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions were detected beginning on April 4 with emission rates ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-09-04T19:18:06+00:00 DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-09-04T19:18:06+00:00 56.0126 -159.7912 ADVISORY YELLOW Sep 7, 2026 23:00 - Precursory low-level activity for episode 55 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption at the summit of Kīlauea began around 12:45 p.m. HST on September 7, 2026 with a sluggish overflow from the north vent. Accordingly, HVO is raising the Alert Level for Kīlauea from ADVISORY to WATCH and the Aviation Color Code from YELLOW to ORANGE. Alert level and aviation color code definitions: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/VHP/alert-level-system. This low-level precursory activity can continue for hours to days before the lava fountaining episode beings. The forecast for episode 55 of ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-07T20:09:10+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-09-07T20:09:10+00:00 19.421 -155.287 WATCH ORANGE Sep 1, 2026 00:04 - Strong northwesterly winds in the vicinity of Katmai and the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes have picked up loose volcanic ash erupted during the 1912 Novarupta-Katmai eruption and are carrying it to the southeast. The National Weather Service has issued a SIGMET for this low-level event and suggests that the maximum cloud height is 6,000 ft (1.83km) above sea level.This phenomenon is not the result of recent volcanic activity and occurs during times of high winds and dry snow-free conditions in the Katmai area and other young volcanic areas of Alaska. No eruption is in ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-08-31T23:56:18+00:00 DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-08-31T23:56:18+00:00 58.279 -154.9533 NORMAL GREEN Aug 30, 2026 02:52 - Strong northwesterly winds in the vicinity of Katmai and the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes have picked up loose volcanic ash erupted during the 1912 Novarupta-Katmai eruption and are carrying it to the southeast. The National Weather Service has issued a SIGMET for this low-level event and suggests that the maximum cloud height is X,XXX ft (XX km) above sea level.This phenomenon is not the result of recent volcanic activity and occurs during times of high winds and dry snow-free conditions in the Katmai area and other young volcanic areas of Alaska. No eruption is in ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-03-06T00:09:32+00:00 DOI-USGS-AVO-2026-03-06T00:09:32+00:00 58.279 -154.9533 NORMAL GREEN Aug 26, 2026 06:22 - Activity Summary: Episode 54 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption began around 10:30 a.m. HST and ended at 7:33 p.m. HST on August 25, 2026, after 9 hours of continuous lava fountaining. The maximum lava fountain height from the north vent was approximately 500 feet (150 meters) above ground level, reached between 12:15 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. HST. Neither the south vent nor the new west vent (formerly the collapse pit) fountained during this episode.The maximum plume height was approximately 17,000 feet (5,200 meters) above sea level.Most tephra fall was restricted to the ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-26T05:56:38+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-26T05:56:38+00:00 19.421 -155.287 ADVISORY YELLOW Aug 26, 2026 05:47 - Episode 54 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption at the summit of Kīlauea ended abruptly at 7:33 p.m. HST on August 25 after 9 hours of continuous lava fountaining from the north vent. Due to reduced ground and aviation hazards, the USGS is dropping the Volcano Alert Level from WATCH to ADVISORY and the Aviation Color Code from ORANGE to YELLOW. Additional details on this eruptive episode will be provided in the next official report.All eruptive vents and lava flows are confined to Halemaʻumaʻu crater within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Tephra fall from volcanic ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-26T01:20:48+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-26T01:20:48+00:00 19.421 -155.287 ADVISORY YELLOW Aug 25, 2026 22:23 - Episode 54 of lava fountaining in Halemaʻumaʻu crater at the summit of Kīlauea began at 10:30 a.m. HST on August 25 and continues as of this notice at 12:15 p.m. HST. Based on HVO webcam views, the north vent lava fountain is reaching 500 feet (150 meters) above ground level, and its plume is reaching 17,000 feet (5,200 meters) above sea level. Ground-level sensors near the eruptive vents indicate that winds are blowing from the northeast direction, which suggests that volcanic gas emissions and volcanic material may be distributed to the southwest direction from ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-25T21:01:34+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-25T21:01:34+00:00 19.421 -155.287 WATCH ORANGE Aug 25, 2026 20:43 - Episode 54 of lava fountaining in Halemaʻumaʻu began at the summit of Kīlauea began at 10:30 HST on August 25, 2026. North vent fountains are currently about 50-75 feet (15-20 meters) meters high and are expected to grow rapidly to about 500 feet (150 meters) in the next 1-2 hours. Weak spattering began yesterday and became more continuous after midnight. Overflows from the north vent began after 6 a.m. this morning, with continuous low-level fountaining starting around 9 a.m. Ground-level sensors near the eruptive vents indicate that winds are blowing from the ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-25T20:17:36+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-25T20:17:36+00:00 19.421 -155.287 WATCH ORANGE Aug 25, 2026 16:38 - Precursory low-level activity for episode 54 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption at the summit of Kīlauea began around 6:16 a.m. HST on August 25 with overflows from the north vent that are continuing at this time. This activity was preceded by the onset of weak spattering from the north vent around 7:30 p.m. HST yesterday evening, August 24. This was marked by the onset of strong, rhythmic gas pistoning spikes in tremor recorded every 5-10 minutes. Glow from the vents continued to increase until after midnight, spattering from the north vent become nearly continuous. ... https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/hans-public/notice/DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-25T16:03:58+00:00 DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-08-25T16:03:58+00:00 19.421 -155.287 WATCH ORANGE