USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-06-15T03:23:25+00:00

Activity Summary: 

• Episode 49 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption at the summit of Kīlauea ended abruptly at 5:05 p.m. HST on June 14, 2026, after 7.5 hours of continuous lava fountaining from the north vent. The eruption is currently paused.
• Tephra fall was restricted to the closed are of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park to the southwest of the active Halemaʻumaʻu vents. No significant tephra or ash fall was reported from open overlooks in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park or in the surrounding communities at this time.

Episode 49 Chronology:

Lava fountaining episode 49 in Halemaʻumaʻu at the summit of Kīlauea began at 9:36 a.m. HST on June 14 and stopped abruptly at 5:05 p.m. HST, after just under 7.5 hours of continuous fountaining from the north vent. The last 2-3 minutes was marked by gas jetting from the north vent. The south vent never fountained during this episode, but it periodically spattered or jetted, sending spatter no more than 150 feet (50 meters) into the air. The instantaneous effusion rate peaked at about 415 cubic yards (320 cubic meters) per second between 10:30 and 11:00 a.m. HST, with an average effusion rate of 260 cubic yards (200 cubic meters) per second for the entire fountaining episode. An estimated 6.5 million cubic yards (5 million cubic meters) of lava erupted and covered about 40-50% of the Halemaʻumaʻu crater floor. The Uēkahuna tiltmeter (UWD) recorded about 15.5 microradians of deflationary tilt during episode 49. Seismicity followed the normal change in tremor patterns seen after most fountain episodes. There were no locatable earthquakes associated with the end of the eruption.

Episode 49 lava fountaining began a little over 5 hours after the onset of precursory lava overflows at 4:10 a.m. HST from the north vent on the morning of June 14. The initial overflow lasted about 20 minutes and was followed by another north vent overflow from 5:59 to 7:04 a.m. HST. North vent dome fountaining restarted at 8:14 a.m. HST then steadily escalated in vigor and height until it transitioned to episode 49 fountaining at 9:36 a.m. HST. The south vent first overflowed at 6:34 a.m. HST while the north vent was overflowing. Intermittent overflows continued from south vent until 9:12 a.m. HST. There were eight south vent overflows in total, each lasting no longer than 7 minutes. Tremor dropped during the south vent overflows and all ended with drain back events that produced noticeable tremor bursts, a pattern typical of gas pistoning. Meanwhile, the north vent lava fountain grew steadily until reaching a maximum height of about 700 feet (210 meters) by around 10:30 a.m. HST. Over the next several hours the fountain height gradually declined, and it was estimated about 300 feet (90 meters) high about 1 hour before the episode ended at 5:05 p.m. HST on June 14.  

The north vent lava fountain produced significant heat and ash, feeding a plume that reached a maximum height of about 18,000 feet (5,500 meters) above sea level based on radar data and verified by webcam images. Winds were out of the northeast for most of the eruption causing the plume to move to the southwest during the most energetic part of the eruption. The plume track largely remained within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park with most tephra fall in the closed area. The more distal part of the plume track roughly followed the Southwest Rift Zone and USGS field crews did not find tephra in the Pahala community. At 2:55 p.m. HST, the National Weather Service updated their Special Weather Statement to include the areas adjacent to the summit of Kīlauea as having potential for ash fall due to a switch to light and variable winds in the area. USGS HVO field crews drove Crater Rim Drive, Highway 11, and into surrounding communities (Volcano, Mauna Loa Estates, and Ohia Estates) without finding any significant ash fall around 3:30 p.m. HST. No ash fall was reported within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, except for very sparse Peleʻs hairs found on parked cars near KMC.

Published Notices about episode 48: 

Volcano Activity Notice at end of episode 49: USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-06-15T02:27:36+00:00

USGS HVO status report regarding ash fall related to episode 49: USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-06-15T01:39:36+00:00

Civil Defense Message about potential ash fall: Hawaiʻi County Civil Defense Message

The National Weather Service issued a special weather statement for south Hawaiʻi.  WWA Summary by Location for 19.44N 155.27W with HIZ052/HIC001/HIZ338 emphasis Special Weather Statement

HVO short messages posted to the HVO website and social media as episode 49 progressed: HVO - Observatory Messages | U.S. Geological Survey

Volcano Activity Notice near maximum fountain heights: USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-06-14T20:16:45+00:00

Volcano Activity Notice when episode 49 began: USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-06-14T18:44:52+00:00 

Kilauea Daily update for June 14 prior to the start of episode 49: USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-06-14T16:47:05+00:00

Volcano Activity Notice issued when precursory eruptions to episode 49 began: USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-HVO-2026-06-14T14:34:51+00:00

The V3 camera gets hit with a volcanic whirlwind during episode 49: USGS Volcanoes🌋 on X: "During Episode 49, at about 2:07 p.m. on June 14, a whirlwind hit the V3 live streaming camera. These whirlwinds are a variety of dust devil that form in the presence of heat, which causes upward air flow, and strong windshear. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory maintains three https://t.co/cKmSruILUv" / X

Hazard Analysis: 

• Volcanic Gas: water vapor (H₂O), carbon dioxide (CO₂), and sulfur dioxide (SO₂) are continuously released during an eruption. SO₂ reacts in the atmosphere to create the visible haze known as vog (volcanic smog) downwind, which may cause respiratory and other problems. Further information on vog can be found at https://vog.ivhhn.org/
• Tephra: small glassy volcanic fragments—volcanic ash, pumice, scoria, Pele’s hair and reticulite—are created by the lava fountains. A combination of fountaining dynamics and wind conditions determines where tephra fall may occur for any given eruption episode. Larger particles fall near the vents while light particles may be wafted greater distances. These particles may be remobilized during windy conditions following recent eruptive episodes. Residents and visitors should minimize exposure to these fragments, which can cause skin, eye, and respiratory irritation. More information and guidance on tephra fall hazards is available at the links below:
  • https://seagrant.soest.hawaii.edu/resource-and-guidance-for-volcanic-tephra-fall/  
  • https://vog.ivhhn.org/sites/default/files/PelesHair_FAQs_v2.pdf
• 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 exist around Kīlauea caldera from Halemaʻumaʻu crater wall instability, ground cracking, and rockfalls that can be enhanced by earthquakes. Close to the vents, the tephra material on the crater rim is prone to cracking, slumping, and small landslides that sometimes expose hot and molten material within. 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.