Kīlauea, the youngest and most active volcano in Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, has reached its 36th lava fountaining episode since the eruption began on December 23, 2024. In just the past month and half, the volcano has broken records for highest lava fountains, the most volume of lava erupted, and the highest rate of lava effusion for this event, which has now lasted over 10 months.
Kīlauea was first formed about 280,000 years ago and is a fairly typical shield volcano with long, shallow slopes. Traditionally, the volcano is viewed by many Native Hawaiians as the home of the volcanic deity Pelehonuamea.
When eruptive episodes are ongoing, the summit region of Kīlauea deflates, as magma stored within the volcano erupts on the surface. The summit then inflates between eruptive episodes as magma accumulates. This pattern of inflation and deflation allows the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) to forecast timeframes for when new eruptive episodes can start.
Episode 36 began mid-morning on November 9 and lasted for five hours. The volcano’s north and south vents erupted 2.1 billion gallons over the course of the episode, helping episode 36 reach the highest rate of lava effusion.
Tephra, rock fragments and particles ejected by a volcanic eruption, coming from Kīlauea’s recent lava fountaining has impacted HVO monitoring stations nearby, with several being buried by tephra and needing to be manually dug out after fountaining ended.
Episode 35, which took place from October 17-18, resulted in fist-size tephra being deposited on Highway 11. Pele’s hair, thin glass fibers formed during an eruption, was also transported downwind to communities on the southwest side of the Island of Hawaiʻi.
The summit region began inflating once episode 36 had ended, and forecasting models suggest that episode 37 is likely to start between November 22 and 29. As long as the pattern of inflation and deflation continues, the eruption will likely continue.
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