Photo & Video Chronology - Kilauea Archive

1 May 2004

Banana flow slips down Pulama pali

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Left. Patches of surface lava define track of Banana flow from top of narrow kipuka (smoke on left) to gentle slope below. Length of visible part of flow about 1 km. 0535. Right. Telephoto of smoking area in left image. Channel of fluid lava crosses `a`a in same flow. 0528.

2 May 2004

Banana flow just above Paliuli

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Left. Banana flow descending low east end of Holei Pali and reaching gentle slope just above Paliuli. 0547. Right. Same flow, same place, different angle. Early morning light gives a kind of alpen glow to scene, but one thing's different. There sure ain't no heat like this in the Alps! 0610.

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Left. Front of Banana flow on gentle slope between Holei Pali and Paliuli. Height of flow front, about 3-4 m. 0558. Right. Same front but 8 minutes later. Interior of flow is relatively fluid and inflates flow front, which then spalls off broken pieces of crust and exposes hot interior. Resulting solid debris forms `a`a. 0606.

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Left. Channeled flow at top of slope shown in first two images. Levees of `a`a bound the channel, and lava in channel is quite fluid. 0621. Right. Floating, folded crust in channel just upstream from segment shown in left image. Width of view, 4-5 m. 0627.

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Left. Back to flow moving down east end of Holei Pali, just below channel shown above. Photographer stands on pahoehoe of Wilipe`a lobe of Mother's Day flow. Kipuka of grassland separates the Wilipe`a and Kohola lobes of the flow. 0637. Right. Looking up the Banana flow from the gentle slope above Paliuli. 0646.

3 May 2004

Banana flow on Paliuli

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Left. Wide view shows several patches of lava in Banana flow on gentle slope above Paliiuli (upper right), two sets of cascades down Paliuli (center), and front of flow on coastal flat fed by left-hand (west) cascade (foreground). Paliuli cascades are 12-15 m high. 0527. Right. Eastern cascades down Paliuli, and front of lava flow fed by these cascades. 0542.

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Left. Western cascade on Paliuli. Lava is gushing or spurting down widest strand of cascade. Note how glow from cascade reflects of lava flows in face of Paliuli. Height of cascade, 12-15 m. 0546. Right. Same cascade with obliging videographer for scale. 0551.

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Left. Predawn sky overlooking front of flow fed by eastern cascades. Note severe heat shimmer, which distorts view of clouds. 0552 Right. Similar scene as in right above but lighter. 0606.

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Left. Western cascade in distance, with videographer in same place. Lava flow in foreground fed ultimately by eastern cascade, but lava issues from tube just right of view. 0607. Right. Tube supplying lava in flow of left image. Note how it appears from under crust, i.e. a tube. Opening of tube is about 1.5 m wide. 0608.

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Left. Eastern cascade, comprised of several strands, all fed by same channeled flow above pali. Harsh lighting in severe long-angle sun. 0613. Right. View from top of Paliuli, looking obliquely across eastern cascade to coastal flat. Person near left edge of image gives scale. 0617.

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Left. View from same place as right image above, looking directly down one strand of cascades. Note `a`a levees along edge of channeled strand. Three people, distorted by heat shimmer, give scale. Can you find them? 0621.  Right. Same leveed channel, but at higher magnification. 0621.

4 May 2004

What does Banana lava look like?

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Left. Active western cascade on Paliuli. Yesterday morning's eastern cascade, near right edge of image, is entirely crusted though possibly still carrying lava. In foreground is part of lava flow fed by cascades. Height of Paliuli, 12-15 m. 0632. Right. Small active toe along eastern margin of Banana flow on coastal flat. Lava at bottom of image is about 40 cm wide. 0606.

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Left. Toe just starting to plummet down small cliff onto tilted piece of crust below. Right image shows final product. Width of toe, about 40 cm. 0610. Right. Same toe as in right image has flowed down tilted piece of crust and is stagnating in depression at base of cliff. 0611.

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Left. Ropy surface on pahoehoe toe along margin of Banana flow. Lava flows down steep slope and slows at base, causing plastic crust to wrinkle. Widest part of toe, about 1 m. 0609. Right. Lava breaking out from under crust, with lower part of western cascade in background. 0612.

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Left. Lava pours from crack in thin crust on toe. Width of view, about 1.5 m. 0619. Right. Lava flow advancing away from Paliuli, with gushing western cascade in background. Note how much more vigorous the cascade is now than it was 10 minutes earlier (right image above). This increased happened suddenly. Similar surges were observed yesterday afternoon, too. 0622.

6 May 2004

Sluggish Banana breakouts

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Left. Lava oozing from inflating flow 350 m from base of Paliuli. Note how lava emerges on both sides of floating crust. Width of active toe, 2 m. 0534. Right. Similar kind of sluggish breakout, again with floating crust surrounded by oozing lava. Width of breakout, 2 m. 0540.

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Left. Same breakout as in right above, showing context in middle of inflating flow with few breakouts. Pulama pali forms most of background. 0541. Right. Breakout about 200 m from Paliuli, looking west at nearly full Flower Moon and reddening skies of sunrise. Sun is about to rise in eastern sky. 0548.

7 May 2004

Manifestations of lava

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Left. Track of Banana flow is along right (east) side of long green kipuka just right of center. Flow is warmer and hence lighter hued than other Mother's Day flows. Just below center of image, flow splits into two strands that come together downstream just above top of Paliuli (near bottom of image). Banana flow then cascades over Paliuli under crust and spreads both away from pali and westward along base of pali. 0854. Right. The eyes have it. Two incandescent holes indicate position of forks in fallen tree trunk. Trunk remains, but smaller forks have burned away. 1100.

8 May 2004

Banana flow surges onward

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Left. Lava started surging from front of Banana flow several minutes before this image was taken. Front had been relatively stagnant before then. Note that lava pours down steep slope into depression, about 580 m from coastline. Width of surging lava, 2-10 m. 0540. Right. Others join the show as front of Banana continues to move. 0546.

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Left. First of three images, showing tilted slab of crust and its demise. Excuse the raindrops on lens in first and second images. Extreme heat evaporated the water by third image time. 0546:59. Right. Ten seconds later, slab is falling. 0547:09.

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Left. Slab has fallen and becoming reincorporated into flow. 0547:26. Right. Lava heading down moderate slope into depression ahead of Banana flow. Width of flowing lava, about 3 m. Note wrinkled crust on right-hand part of lava, and how this crust is itself becoming rolled and warped. 0602.

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Left. As slight comes, context of Banana front relative to surroundings becomes clearer. Front is busy, as many small breakouts are active. 0605. Right. Lava wells from under smooth crust of channel in Banana flow 20 m upstream from front of flow. Pulama pali, low Holei Pali, and Paliuli in background. Fume rises from various points along active Banana lava tube. 0611.

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Left. HVO crew enjoys the advancing Banana flow. Front of flow is a few meters right of image. 0652. Right. Double rainbow misses pot of gold--at least the liquid gold--but makes nice backdrop for the really good stuff.

9 May 2004

Mother's Day at Banana flow front

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Left. Lazy toe forming at front of Banana flow. Good lighting shows off wrinkles in crust on toe. Width of toe, about 1 m. 0620. Right. Small toes move across ground surface in early morning sun. Width of view, 2 m. 0622.

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Left. Toe fed by small opening in inflating flow. Lava pours to side from under crust as it reaches base of short decline. Width of toe, about 1 m. 0625. Right. Looking upstream at track of Banana flow in the pali system. Fume marks places where gas rises from lava in tube and reaches surface. The kipuka surrounded by Banana flow, at 10 o'clock from center, is same as that shown in first image of May 7 below. Largest pali is Pulama pali. Kipuka is on gentle slope between Pulama pali and the Holei Pali-Paliuli terrain. 0627.

10 May 2004

Scenes at Banana flow front

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Left. Margin of Banana flow near end of flow, with upstream part of flow on Pulama pali in background. Three small breakouts visible on Pulama, probably coming from same tube that feeds lava in foreground. 0529. Right. Toe near end of Banana flow, moving from left to right into gentle depression. Note wrinkles and cracks forming in crust on central part of toe. Width of image, 2-3 m. 0542.

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Left. Lazy toes slowly moving seaward. Width of foreground view, 4-5 m. 0543. Right. Crust on toe is being pulled apart taffy-like as toe advances. Note complex warped and folded pattern of crust. Width of view, 40 cm. 0558.

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Left. Another toe pushing through crust, which is breaking and folding in the process. Toe is 40 cm high. 0600. Right. Graceful stream of lava flows from under crust and develops its own wrinkled crust. Length of stream, 1.5 m. 0602.

Map of flows from Pu`u `O`o: 9 April 2004

Map shows lava flows erupted during 1983-present activity of Pu`u `O`o and Kupaianaha (see large map).

Shades of red denote Mother's Day flow, which began erupting on May 12, 2002 and continues to the present. Darkest shade indicates lava flows erupted in November 2003-9 April 2004. Yellow stars indicate centers of recently active rootless shields built along lava tube in Mother's Day flow. As of April 9, no shields were active except for Okita shield, uppermost in the rootless shield complex. As of April 9, most activity was located south of the rootless shield complex and was fed by breakouts from the Mother's Day tube, which now carries lava beneath the shields to the breakout points.

Through September and into early October 2003, lava was moving along the east and west sides of the Mother's Day flow. The east-side lava (known as the August 9 breakout) came from the August 9 rootless shield, itself fed by the main Mother's Day tube from Pu`u `O`o. The west side lava, known as the Kohola arm of the Mother's Day flow, branched off the tube system below the rootless shield.

In early October 2003, the August 9 breakout stopped moving, the Kohola died back to a trickle, and the one labeled rootless shield gained prominence. By October 16, however, the shield had partly collapsed, leaving several drained perched ponds behind. Upstream from the shield, many hornitos and small flows formed over the Mother's Day tube. Soon thereafter, other rootless shields began to form over the Mother's Day, August 9, and Kohola tubes.

New vents opened at the southern base of Pu`u `O`o on January 19 and fed Martin Luther King (MLK) flows, which remained active until March 5. Several small vents formed during this time. On March 20, Prince Kuhio Kalaniana`ole (PKK) flow originated from two vents, main one about 250 m south of base of Pu`u `O`o. That flow was sluggishly active when map was made on April 9.

Vents in West Gap Pit became active in early October, were quiet for 3 weeks, and then resumed intermittent activity that continued well into December. Other vents were also sporadically active in Puka Nui (near West Gap Pit) and in the crater of Pu`u `O`o.

Map of Pu`u `O`o and vicinity: 9 April 2004

Map shows vents, lava flows, and other features near Pu`u `O`o frequently referred to in updates (see large map). These features change often, but this map should help those viewers lost in the terminology. The cones in West Gap are just outside the boundary of the crater--the oval shaped depression containing the seven numbered vents (now down to 6, as Humble Vent has been buried by a mound of lava flows erupted from Dave's Pit/Vent in March. Red color denotes flows--the Mother's Day flows--erupted since May 12, 2002. Light orange color indicates episode-55 flows erupted between March 1997 and August 2002 (exclusive of Mother's Day flows). Darker orange represents MLK flows, and yellow, PKK flow. Vents for these two sets of flows shown by indicated symbols. Gray shows flows of earlier episodes.

Eruption-viewing opportunities change constantly, refer to the HVO home page for current information. Those readers planning a visit to Kilauea or Mauna Loa volcanoes can get much useful information from Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park.