Hawaii's Kilauea volcano eruption

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the recent eruption of Kilauea volcano in Hawaii, including its impact on local residents, geological features, and comparisons to other volcanic events. Participants share personal experiences, observations, and reactions to the ongoing volcanic activity.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express surprise at housing developments being built on ancient lava fields, questioning the decision-making behind such developments.
  • There are reports of multiple fissures opening in Leilani Estates, with ongoing volcanic activity being monitored by officials.
  • One participant shares a personal anecdote about planning a trip to the Big Island, expressing concern about the timing of their visit amidst the eruptions.
  • Another participant discusses the nature of Kilauea as a volcano that is "always" active, noting its historical eruptions since 1983.
  • Comparisons are made between Kilauea's eruptions and the eruption of Mount St. Helens, highlighting differences in eruption styles and impacts.
  • Participants engage in mathematical reasoning regarding the volume of lava erupted from Kilauea compared to that of Mount St. Helens, with one participant seeking confirmation of their calculations.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express a mix of curiosity and concern regarding the volcanic activity, with no clear consensus on the implications of living near active lava fields or the safety of current conditions. Multiple viewpoints on the nature of volcanic eruptions and their impacts are present.

Contextual Notes

Some participants note the complexity of defining volcanic activity and the differences in eruption characteristics between various volcanoes. There are also references to the historical context of Kilauea's eruptions and the ongoing monitoring by local officials.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to individuals following geological events, those planning travel to volcanic regions, and anyone curious about the implications of living near active volcanoes.

davenn
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Some amazing photos!

180504034247-bt106-hawaii-volcano-05042018-exlarge-169.jpg
 

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I find it odd that they allowed housing developments to be built upon 200 year old lava fields.

theyll.let.people.build.anywhere.in.hawaii.png


Talk about "caveat emptor"!
 

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OmCheeto said:
I find it odd that they allowed housing developments to be built upon 200 year old lava fields.

I have visited that area. An aunt in law lives there.
That whole area has many housing area among fields.
There are other much more recently lava'ed (lava inundated) areas nearby.
 
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Well, my timing could have been better. We are scheduled to arrive on the big island two weeks from today. (Trip planned and booked months ago.)
 
Janus said:
Well, my timing could have been better. We are scheduled to arrive on the big island two weeks from today. (Trip planned and booked months ago.)
Can you get a refund, or maybe change to a different island?
 
  • #10
berkeman said:
Can you get a refund, or maybe change to a different island?
It's the 2nd island of a two island trip, Maui for 5 nights and 5 nights in Kona. This means that the return flight is booked out of Kona. I'd really rather not have to cut the trip short and rebook out of Maui at this late date. At least we will be on the other side of the island.
I think we will play it by ear. If things really do go sour while we are in Maui and we end up not being able to get to Kona, at least I had the foresight to get travel insurance on the total cost of the trip.
 
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  • #11
Janus said:
Well, my timing could have been better. We are scheduled to arrive on the big island two weeks from today. (Trip planned and booked months ago.)

berkeman said:
Can you get a refund, or maybe change to a different island?

why ?? ...
gosh what an awesome time to be there !, I am jealous, I don't get to the "big island" till mid August and the
activity is likely to have died down by them :frown:

If I could, I would already be on a plane to Hawaii to photo and video all the action from the volcano
the eruption is in a reasonably confined region on the SE side of the island. The volcanoes there don't produce huge ash clouds as with volcanoes like Mt St Helens etc because of the very different makeup of the erupted material ... Hawaii volcanoes are pretty much pure basaltic.

Make the most of it, Janus, you are very fortunate !
spend the buck on helicopter trips over and around the volcano area and I expect to see lots of photos from you ! that's an order Mr. ! :wink::wink::-p:biggrin:

Dave
 
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  • #12
OmCheeto said:
Then again, I may not know how they define "Kilauea".

well, it is pretty much "always" active. there is very few times when lava isn't flowing out to the coast over the last 30+ years since
the major eruption of 1983
There's just times when it is REALLY active as in the last several days

My last trip there was in April 1999 ...

dave_lava1.jpg
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lava01.jpg
plume3.jpg
Dave
 

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  • #13
davenn said:
why ?? ...
gosh what an awesome time to be there !, I am jealous, I don't get to the "big island" till mid August and the
activity is likely to have died down by them :frown:

If I could, I would already be on a plane to Hawaii to photo and video all the action from the volcano
the eruption is in a reasonably confined region on the SE side of the island. The volcanoes there don't produce huge ash clouds as with volcanoes like Mt St Helens etc because of the very different makeup of the erupted material ... Hawaii volcanoes are pretty much pure basaltic.

Make the most of it, Janus, you are very fortunate !
spend the buck on helicopter trips over and around the volcano area and I expect to see lots of photos from you ! that's an order Mr. ! :wink::wink::-p:biggrin:

Dave

Well, there's active and there's ACTIVE. Too much activity and you probably would not be able to get close enough to see anything. The last I heard they had closed the Hawaii Volcanoes Nat. Park for safety reasons.
 
  • #14
Janus said:
Well, there's active and there's ACTIVE. Too much activity and you probably would not be able to get close enough to see anything.
that's why I said helicopters :smile:

If it is still active when I get there, I will be spending big on helicopter flight(s)Wife and I booked our trip there around 3 weeks ago

Dave
 
  • #15
Eight fissures open now at Leilani Estates.

Volcanic activity settles for now, officials say, but it's not over
Updated: Saturday, May 5th 2018, 9:39 pm PDT

PUNA, BIG ISLAND (HawaiiNewsNow) -
As evening fell Saturday, Hawaii County officials said volcanic activity has slowed, but it is not over yet.
Hawaii County Civil Defense says there are eight open fissures with no new fissures emerging since early Saturday. ​

I finally figured out why I was confused about what "Kilauea" meant.
It's a region.
Location_Kilauea.png

Where I live, volcanoes are distinct features, with one hole in the middle.

Really interesting stuff on the FAQ at the Natl Park Service:
  • Kilauea has been erupting since 1983
  • The current eruption rate of Kilauea volcano is 250,000-650,000 cubic yards/day (200,000-500,000 cubic meters/day).
  • Since the start of the current Kilauea eruption more than 1,400 million cubic meters of lava have been erupted. Mount St. Helens erupted 1 cubic kilometer of ash (about 10 times greater than the current Kilauea eruption).

That last one is probably why I'm most confused. Mount St. Helens is only 50 miles from my house, and I stay the hell away from it.
Per wiki; "Approximately fifty-seven people were killed directly from the blast and 200 houses, 47 bridges, 15 miles (24 km) of railways and 185 miles (298 km) of highway were destroyed... More than 4,000,000,000 board feet (9,400,000 m3) of timber was damaged or destroyed, mainly by the lateral blast."​

I think most of the damage happened in less than a hour, while Kilauea's been doing this for 35 years.
It's no wonder people are living in lava flows: "Between 1986 and 1991, Chain of Craters Road was cut, and the community of Kapa’ahu, the village of Kalapana, and the subdivisions of Kālapana Gardens and Royal Gardens were lost to the lava."

I was flabbergasted when I zoomed in on what I thought would be the ghost town of Kalapana, only to find dozens of homes there!
But it's starting to make sense now.
 

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  • #16
OmCheeto said:
Since the start of the current Kilauea eruption more than 1,400 million cubic meters of lava have been erupted. Mount St. Helens erupted 1 cubic kilometer of ash (about 10 times greater than the current Kilauea eruption).
I'm reading this and thinking ... is this correct maths ??

Now I don't claim to be great at math, so please correct me when needed :biggrin: :rolleyes:

1,400 million cubic metres = 1 billion 400 million (1,400,000,000 ) yes ? ( 1 billion = 1000 million)

= 1.4 billion cubic metres of material

1 cubic km = 1000m x 1000m x 1000m ... that is a cube , 1000 metres on each side

1000 x 1000 x 1000 = 1,000,000,000 ( 1 billion) ( Mt St Helens)

Kilauea has erupted = 1.4 billion cubic metres or 1.4 cubic km

hope I have done that correctly ?If that is all correct then where does the 10 times more material from St Helens come from (maths wise )??Dave
 
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  • #17
davenn said:
I'm reading this and thinking ... is this correct maths ??

Now I don't claim to be great at math, so please correct me when needed :biggrin: :rolleyes:

...

I also noticed that, and so don't think you are that bad at maths.
I averaged their "200,000-500,000 cubic meters/day" comment, multiplied it by 35 years, and came up with 4.5 km^3.
This number is pretty close to what both wiki and the USGS said: 4 km^3(as of 2012) and 4.4 km^3, respectively.

Numbers for St. Helens were similar:
4.2 km^3 per wiki
2.5 km^3 [avalanche only] per the USGS. Guessing the ash accounts for the rest of the volume.​

Perhaps we shouldn't take anything coming out of Hawaii as a "valid reference"
  1. Their volcanoes are flat
  2. 4 ≈ 10 x 4
  3. They measure distance in acres [see below]
From my Twitter feed this morning:

Allyson Blair
[Emmy award winner living in Honolulu]
‏Verified account @AllysonBlairTV
17 hours ago

#BREAKING This is video just into our newsroom. It was shot 5 acres in on Makamae St. on the Kalapana side. #Kilauea​
[video]
[ref]​
 
  • #18
OmCheeto said:
I also noticed that, and so don't think you are that bad at maths.
I averaged their "200,000-500,000 cubic meters/day" comment, multiplied it by 35 years, and came up with 4.5 km^3.
This number is pretty close to what both wiki and the USGS said: 4 km^3(as of 2012) and 4.4 km^3, respectively.

Numbers for St. Helens were similar:
4.2 km^3 per wiki
2.5 km^3 [avalanche only] per the USGS. Guessing the ash accounts for the rest of the volume.​

Perhaps we shouldn't take anything coming out of Hawaii as a "valid reference"
  1. Their volcanoes are flat
Er, no. Its just that the vast majority of it is below sea level and it is only the top that is sticking out. Mauna Kea is 33,000 ft above the ocean floor. At sea level you are still some 19,000 ft above the base.
 
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  • #19
Glad I'm not the only one whose mind went a little berzerk with this:

From the UK; "'CURTAIN OF FIRE' Horror as Kilauea volcano in Hawaii spews lava 150ft in the air, cracks streets and torches forests forcing 10,000 people to flee"

Compared to my interpretation of someone living there:

Kalapana Lava Refuge
Moved to Kalapana, from Alaska, back in '82.
Bought some land, planted some stuff.
Lava destroyed a lot of it, so I moved to California.
Then I moved back.
Come visit!
Only $100 per night.​

I was last in Hawaii in 1980, on the island of Oahu, and stayed for about 2.5 months. I think that was before all this "perma-volcano" stuff started happening. Hence, why I didn't bother to go visit.
 
  • #20
Janus said:
Er, no. Its just that the vast majority of it is below sea level and it is only the top that is sticking out. Mauna Kea is 33,000 ft above the ocean floor. At sea level you are still some 19,000 ft above the base.
I was trying to be "funny"...

I've also been trying to digitize what's going on, but things are a bit too dynamic at the moment.
google.earth.vs.usgs.png


And what are negative depths all about?

usgs.negative.earthquake.depths.png


Do earthquakeologists measure depth from sea level?
 

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  • #21
OmCheeto said:
Do earthquakeologists measure depth from sea level?
no, not usually

just yet another inconsistency in the data :rolleyes:
 
  • #22
So sad.
 
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  • #23
OmCheeto said:
Their volcanoes are flat

I'm old, and therefore biased.

2018.05.06.1430.HST.LAVA.png
 

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  • #24
Actually the negative numbers mean Above Sea Level. Since this is a volcano, and it is not plate tectonics at work, which is almost always deep in the ground where the 'break' occurs, in a volcano the 'Breaks' can be cooled lava being cracked from contact with fresher, hotter lava and pressure. This can lead to aftershocks as the lava encounters water pockets and get steam explosions, but much of it is the pressurized lava forcing it's way through weakened cracks, and any new EQ can create the beginnings of a new one. Kilauea has been on ongoing thing, with land forming and dropping off in chunks along the edge and occasional breakthroughs like we have ongoing now, and these are just Little rifts along a deeper lava river. However, much of this is happening around and above sea level. One can see the same thing in the Himalayas at times, although even there the quakes are usually triggered Deep, once in a while there is a lesser break higher up such as peak collapses and the like with the landslide often causing nearly as much of a signal
 
  • #25
OmCheeto said:
I find it odd that they allowed housing developments to be built upon 200 year old lava fields.

View attachment 225136

Talk about "caveat emptor"!
Ditto, homes built on flood plains.
 
  • #26
Janus said:
Well, my timing could have been better. We are scheduled to arrive on the big island two weeks from today. (Trip planned and booked months ago.)

A former coworker just flew over to Hawaii on Friday (May 4) so I texted her after I heard the news, asked her if she was on the big island. She replied they were, but said they were on the other side and not affected at all by this, but they have been hitting a lot of overcast weather. Which I suppose may or may not have anything to do with the eruption..
 
  • #27
Janus said:
Well, my timing could have been better. We are scheduled to arrive on the big island two weeks from today. (Trip planned and booked months ago.)
You can still have a great visit to the Big Island unless you booked a room in lower Puna. As far as I know, you can still visit the Kilaeua caldera, and the HVO is still open. You can visit Mauna Kea. Snorkeling is still good except near the ocean entries of the lava. The lava is not scary unless it's encroaching on your house or person.
 
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  • #28
OmCheeto said:
I find it odd that they allowed housing developments to be built upon 200 year old lava fields.

View attachment 225136

Talk about "caveat emptor"!
Yah. My 75-yr-old sis sold everything in Seattle, used all to build home that is now 3 mi. N of erupting fissures. Dream of her life, recognized the hazard, doesn't seem to be regretting her move even today. Insurance not possible. Not boring life! I think even today she regrets the almost unimaginable buckets downpours more than the eruption. But accepting of it all.
 
  • #29
OmCheeto said:
I find it odd that they allowed housing developments to be built upon 200 year old lava fields.

View attachment 225136

Talk about "caveat emptor"!

In and about Houston developers built whole subdivisions in an area that was supposed to be an army corp engineered flood plain. However, at the time it was built the army corp had insufficient funds to buy the whole 50mi tract and instead bought 37mi. Over the years developers began to encroach the area with more and more houses which subsequently got flooded last year.

https://apps.texastribune.org/harvey-reservoirs/

Bottom line: Be careful where you buy your house. Do some digging as far back as you can. Don't trust that the realtor or seller will divulge this information. However, I think the title company should have provided this info.
 
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  • #30
Lee Duke said:
You can still have a great visit to the Big Island unless you booked a room in lower Puna. As far as I know, you can still visit the Kilaeua caldera, and the HVO is still open. You can visit Mauna Kea. Snorkeling is still good except near the ocean entries of the lava. The lava is not scary unless it's encroaching on your house or person.
Since the last time I posted, they have re-opened parts of the Volcanoes National park, so this is good news. No matter what, I'm sure we'll have a good time ( Of the two of us, it's my wife that is the worry-wort).
However, now they are predicting thundershowers in Kona on the day of our arrival, and our flight from Maui is on a Light Cessna, so we might be in for a bumpy ride. Of course, that's still 11 days from now, plenty of time for the forecast to change.