USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2025-03-05T17:07:54+00:00

Activity Summary:  

Episode 12 of the eruption of Kīlauea continues within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park at 9:30 a.m. HST March 5 but reduced from yesterdayʻs activity.

Small, intermittent flows first erupted yesterday at 7:30 and 9:33 a.m. HST March 4 followed by continuous eruption of sluggish flows at 12:45 p.m. HST.  Fountaining began at 2:00 p.m. HST and reached heights of 600 feet (180 meters) by 3:00 p.m. HST and sustained them until the north vent quit erupting at 8:26 p.m. HST March 4.  The south vent sustained fountains of 200-400 feet (60-120 meters), which decreased this morning after 5:00 a.m. HST March 5.  Fountaining from the south vent increased at around 8:00 a.m. HST and the north vent briefly resumed fountaining and erupting lava flows from 8:42 to 9:11 a.m. HST.  Lava flows fed by fountains from the south vent continue.   Lava flows from this episode have covered over two thirds of the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu within the southern part of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera). 

These flows mark the sporadic start of episode 12 of Kīlauea's ongoing eruption in Halemaʻumaʻu crater within Kaluapele (the summit caldera) that began on December 23, 2024.  Prior to this, there have been 11 episodes of lava fountaining separated by pauses in activity. All eruptive activity is occurring in Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. No significant changes have been noted along Kīlauea’s East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone.

Current hazards include volcanic gas emissions and windblown volcanic glass (Pele’s Hair) that may impact Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park and nearby communities.

Summit Observations:

Episode 12 began with two short eruptions of sluggish degassed lava.  The first was from the south vent at approximately 7:30 am HST March 4 ending at 8:00 a.m. HST. The second eruption was from the north vent and lasted from 9:33 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. HST.  Continuous eruption of sluggish flows began at 12:45 p.m. HST from the south vent with lava erupting at the north vent at 1:46 p.m. HST. Low fountains began from the north vent at 2:00 p.m. HST and by 2:15 p.m. were over 100 feet (30 m) tall.  The change from inflation to deflation and a sharp increase in tremor accompanied the onset of fountaining at 2:00 p.m. HST.  Fountains from the north vent continued to grow and by 2:30 were over 300 feet high (100 meters) when low dome fountains reappeared in the south vent and began erupting lava onto the crater floor.  By 3:00 p.m. HST fountains from the south vent were beginning to grow and by 3:20 p.m. HST they were the same height (300-400 feet, 100-130 meters) as the north vent.  Fountaining from the south vent continued to increase in height and were approaching 600 feet (180 meters).  

The north vent fountains dropped to about half of that height and that relationship continued until the north vent quit erupting at 8:26 p.m. HST.  Sustained fountain heights from the south vent dropped from 600 feet (180 m) to 300-400 feet (90-120 meters) and continued throughout most of the night.  Scattered low spatter bursts occurred within the north cone throughout the rest of the eruption but produced no flows.  At about 3:00 a.m. HST March 5, sustained fountain heights from the south cone had gradually dropped to 200-300 feet (60-90 meters) and dropped again to 150-250 feet (30-60 meters) high around 4:30 a.m. HST.  By 6:00 a.m. HST, sustained fountains were mostly within south cone with bursts going more than 100 feet (30 meters) higher than the cone seen on the V1 camera.  Fountaining from the south vent increased at around 8:00 a.m. HST and the north vent briefly resumed fountaining and erupting lava flows from 8:42 to 9:11 a.m. HST.  Lava flows fed by fountains from the south vent continue.   Lava flows from episode 12 have covered over two thirds of the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu within the southern part of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera). 

Small breakouts were visible on the rootless flows near the September 2023 vents on the eastern down dropped block on the evening of March 4.  By midnight, this activity increased and there were several pads of lava that continued to be active at daylight.

Deflationary tilt at the summit is currently measured at about 11 microradians since the start of episode 12. A decrease in the rate of deflation and seismic tremor coincided with the end of high fountaining at 8:26 p.m. HST on March 4.  Both deflation and tremor increased slightly during the brief reactivation of the north vent at 8:42 a.m. HST this morning. 

On March 4, weather and daylight conditions allowed for an approximate measurement of 35,000 tonnes/day of SO₂ emissions while both fountains were at their maximum. Rates will have dropped when the north vent stopped erupting last night and as south vent fountains diminished during the early morning hours.

Episodes of Halemaʻumaʻu lava fountaining since December 23, 2024, have continued for 13 hours to 8 days and episodes have been separated by pauses in eruptive activity lasting from less than 24 hours to 12 days. While episode 12 began with intermittent eruption at 7:30 a.m. HST, continuous eruption did not begin until 12:45 p.m. HST.

Strands of volcanic glass known as Pele’s Hair have been reported on surfaces throughout the summit area of Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park and surrounding communities. 

Summit eruption livestream: https://www.youtube.com/usgs/live

Summit eruption webcams: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/summit-webcams 

Summit eruption reference map: January 15, 2025—Kīlauea summit eruption reference map | U.S. Geological Survey

Volcano Watch article about Pele's Hair from this eruption: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo/news/volcano-watch-recent-lava-fountains-highlight-peles-hair-hazards

Rift Zone Observations:

Rates of seismicity and ground deformation remain very low in the East Rift Zone and Southwest Rift Zone with no significant earthquake activity in the past 24 hours. Sulfur dioxide (SO₂) from the East Rift Zone remains below detection limit.

Analysis: 

The current eruption is marked by episodic fountaining not seen in any of the other Halemaʻumaʻu eruptions since 2020. Fountains and lava flows have erupted from two vents that we refer to as the north vent and south vent. The previous episodes lasted from a few hours to over a week. Each fountaining episode has been accompanied by strong deflation of the summit region. Pauses between the fountaining episodes have been marked by an immediate change from deflation to inflation as the magma chamber recharges and repressurizes.

The start of sporadic overflows from the north and south vents marked the onset of episode 12 of the current eruption starting at 7:30 a.m. followed by continuous eruption at 12:45 p.m. and finally initiation of fountaining at 2:00 p.m. HST. Only episode 4 of the eruption was preceded by several hours of sluggish overflows prior to the onset of fountaining.  The intermittent nature of todays overflows differs slightly, but is also related pushing of degassed magma from the vent prior to fountaining.  Based upon the decreasing activity and length of prior eruption, episode 12 is expected to end today, March 5.

Timeline of eruptive episodes since December 23, 2024: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/science/eruption-information

HVO continues to closely monitor Kīlauea and is in contact with Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park and the Hawai‘i County Civil Defense Agency about eruptive hazards.

Please see the Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park website for visitor information: https://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm.

Hazards: 

The eruption has been occurring within a closed area of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. High levels of volcanic gas—primarily water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), and sulfur dioxide (SO2)—are the primary hazard of concern, as this hazard can have far-reaching effects downwind. As SO2 is continuously released from the summit during an eruption, it will react in the atmosphere to create the visible haze known as vog (volcanic smog) downwind of Kīlauea. Vog information can be found at https://vog.ivhhn.org/.

Additional hazards include Pele's hair and other volcanic fragments from lava fountains. Pele's hair are strands of volcanic glass often produced by lava fountaining activity. Volcanic fragments can fall on the ground within a few hundred yards (meters) of the eruptive vent(s), or on the western caldera rim downwind of the vent(s). Strong winds may waft light particles to greater distances downwind. Once they are on the ground, they can sometimes cluster and tangle together giving it the appearance of a tumbleweed. The extent of Pele's hair is dependent on lava fountaining activity and current wind conditions.  Residents and visitors should minimize exposure to these volcanic particles, which can cause skin and eye irritation. More information about how Pele's hair is formed is available here: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo/news/volcano-watch-peles-hairs-a-beautiful-hazard-island-hawaii. A Frequently Asked Questions document developed for the 2022 Mauna Loa eruption includes information about potential health effects of Pele's hair and is available here: https://vog.ivhhn.org/sites/default/files/FAQ_on_air_quality_and_health_during_Mauna_Loa_eruption_v1.6.pdf

Hawaiian lava flows generally advance slowly downslope, and during this eruption flows have been confined to Halemaʻumaʻu crater and the southwest side of Kaluapele, Kīlauea's summit caldera. 

Other significant hazards also 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 Kīlauea's caldera rim surrounding Halemaʻumaʻu crater, an area that has been closed to the public since late 2007.

For discussion of Kīlauea hazards, please see: https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hawaiian-volcano-observatory/hazards.