Kīlauea's 2018 Fissure Eruption – Chronology, Processes, and Impacts of Kilauea's Largest Eruption in 200 Years

Allan Lerner

University of Oregon

5:30 pm social hour

7:00 pm presentation

Kilauea Volcano is the youngest volcano in the Hawaiian island chain and one of the most active volcanoes on Earth. In spring 2018, volcanic activity at Kilauea took a dramatic turn, starting with a fissure eruption forming beneath a residential community and ultimately expanding into Kilauea's largest eruption in 200 years. This talk will provide a first-hand account of this historic eruption, which included thousands of earthquakes, major collapses of the summit caldera, and vast outpourings of lava that dramatically reshaped the southeast corner of Hawai'i.

Click HERE for a recent paper by Allan and others on the 2018 rift eruption and summit collapse of Kilauea.

Click HERE for a video compilation from a helicopter overflight of Kīlauea Volcano's lower East Rift Zone on June 6, 2018, around 6:30 AM. The video shows the fissure 8 lava fountain feeding a channelized lava flow that travels northeast around the Kapoho cone, and then flows toward the south to enter the ocean at Kapoho Bay and Vacationland. The ocean entry has completely filled Kapoho Bay with lava, building a delta that extends 0.8 miles from shore.

Link to  more videos from the Hawaii Volcano Observatory