Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park

Crimson lava fountains shooting into the sky and a shimmering lake of molten rock make the Kīlauea volcano's latest eruption a sight to behold at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, and park officials hope those who come to enjoy it do so in a safe and respectful manner.

Last month a "Volcano Watch" article discussed the bicentennial of the first visit of Westerners to Kīlauea caldera, led by English missionary William Ellis, in 1823. Ellis did not just visit the summit region; he had approached from Kaʻū, traveling along what eventually became known as Kīlauea’s Southwest Rift Zone. Ellis first witnessed evidence of Kīlauea’s restlessness there, in the form of a vast, 4.8-square-mile (12.5 square-kilometer) lava flow that had erupted just a short time before.

Ocean swells are constantly occurring across the Earth’s oceans. These swells interact with the ocean crust below, creating continuous ocean noise that travels all over the Earth, including through our active volcanoes here in Hawaii. Because ocean noise signals are always being generated, scientists can use these seismic sources to identify small changes occurring in the Earth’s crust over time.

On August 1, 1823, an English missionary named William Ellis visited Kīlauea caldera with his Hawaiian guides on a tour of the Island of Hawaiʻi. He and his missionary companions were the first Westerners to visit the summit of Kīlauea, and the book that Ellis later published includes the first contemporary written observations of Kīlauea’s eruptive activity.