Yesterday, a new eruption started on the slopes of Kilauea. Far down the East Rift zone, in the Leilani Estates subdivision, fissures began to open yesterday. By the time evening hit, lava was spattering from the cracks and short lava flows that travelled ten meters (30 feet) soon followed.

Scientists from the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory flew over the new eruption soon after it started and captured pictures and video of the eruption. The first thing to notice is that the area has not seen an eruption in a long time. The landscape is forested and, unfortunately, also developed. Houses are sprinkled throughout the trees in this subdivision, and much like the homes at Kalapana, these homes are now in direct danger of being destroyed by lava flows. Luckily, these lava flows are sluggish so far, so no people are in danger and the subdivision is currently being evacuated. The subdivision has over 700 building and 1700 residents.

The fissures appeared to have stopped emitting lava after a few hours. This does not mean the eruption is over as more magma could be moving through the tube system under Kilauea’s East Rift. Usually, the new eruptions follow a sequence of inflation and earthquakes, then fumes, then fissures forming. The lava eruption so far has been much less dramatic than the 2011 Kamoamoa fissure eruption, but this could change.

Earlier in the day, a magnitude 5 earthquake hit the East Rift zone, no doubt related to the intrusion happening on the rift. The result of that earthquake was an ashy plume from Pu’u O’o and after a later overflight of the crater, a deep hole where there was the crater floor and lava lake. This suggests that much of the lava that was supporting and supplying the eruption at Pu’u O’o may have drained as the Leilani Estates eruption was beginning. The question is whether the lava erupting far downslope is from Pu’u O’o (22 kilometers away) or from the summit (over 40 kilometers away). This really betrays just how big Kilauea is!

The collapsed floor of the Pu’u O’o crater after the M5 earthquake on May 3, 2018. USGS/HVO.

The summit lava lake has definitely seen a drop in the lake level, but nothing compared to the drop that occurred prior to the 2011 Kamoamoa fissure eruption. This will be watched closely to see if it continues to drop, suggesting magma moving in the tube system under the East Rift to feed a potential prolonged Leilani Estates eruption.

I’ll update this post as I have more information or events change.