Not to detract from what Loihi may do in a few thousand years, but Kīlauea seems to be suddenly getting very active.
From Volcano National Park
USGS as of yesterday eveningDue to the possibility of a new eruption and unstable geologic activity, park management closed 15,688 acres near Kīlauea Volcano’s Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō vent to the ocean today, including the gravel emergency access road from the eastern gate near Kalapana, to the western gate at the end of Chain of Craters Road, and all land on the makai (ocean) side of the emergency road.
“The recent eruption changes and increased seismicity around the East Rift Zone and Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō vent may threaten land and the community outside the park. The partial closure in the park is necessary to prevent unsafe travel onto lands under the jurisdiction of Hawai‘i County and to keep people safe,” said Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando. “Most of the park, which is 333,308 acres in size, remains open,” she said.
On Monday afternoon, April 30, the crater within Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō collapsed, and a flurry of low magnitude earthquakes continues to shake the eastern side of the island, particularly communities in lower Puna. A small fissure opened to the west of the vent on Tuesday, May 1, but scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory report that an intrusion of magma is heading eastward from the vent towards Highway 130.
Interactive earthquake map showing all the activity.Elevated earthquake activity in Kīlauea's lower East Rift Zone has persisted through the day, with many reported felt events by residents. Earthquake counts have decreased slightly since midnight in the area east of Highway 130.
Beginning this morning a GPS station located about 1.5 km (1 mile) southwest of Nanawale Estates began moving toward the north, indicating the magma intrusion is approaching this area of the East Rift Zone. The station has moved several cm (inches) since this morning.
A tiltmeter at Pu'u 'Ō'ō recorded steady, deflationary tilt during the day, with several sharp inflation offsets. These offsets probably recorded the continued episodic collapse of the crater floor. Some of these offsets corresponded to short-lived ashy plumes rising from the crater.
Tiltmeters at the summit began recording an increased deflationary tilt this afternoon. The summit lava lake level has lowered about 20 m (65 ft) since the deflationary tilt began in the early morning on May 1.
New small ground cracks less than a few cm (inches) wide developed today across a couple of roads in and adjacent to Leilani Estates; these cracks reflect the buildup of stress at the surface due to the magma intrusion. No steam or gases were observed escaping from the cracks.
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Originally Posted by geonuc
