Kilauea is one of three volcanoes that sit over the Hawaiian Hot Spot where daily volcanic activity has taken place for 25 years.

Kilauea volcano is on the Island of Hawaii, also called the Big Island, which is the southernmost island in the chain of Hawaiian Islands. It is located on the southeastern side of the island just below another volcano Mauna Loa.

Kilauea Eruption History

The earliest recorded eruption was in 1790 when a large explosion took place. Kilauea continued to remain active but mostly with gentle lava flow activity. In 1924, there was another violent eruption and very brief eruptions at the summit continued until 1995.

Since 1955, the main activity has been in on the east side of Kilauea known as the East Rift Zone though small summit eruptions continue to occur. From 1969 to 1974, there were rift eruptions at Mauna Ulu.

The current eruption, known as Pu`u `O`o, started in January 1983 and continues to produce lava flows every day.

The Hawaiian Hot Spot

The Hawaiian Islands are on a tectonic plate known as the Pacific Plate which is slowly moving in a northwest direction. As the plate moves over an area where molten lava (magma) has formed, volcanoes push through the plate and eventually form an island. The area of current activity is called a hot spot.

The islands which are northeast of the Big Island of Hawaii, such as Maui and Oahu, were formed through volcanic action but are now dormant because they have moved away from the hot spot. Three active volcanoes on the Big Island are now over the hot spot:

• Kilauea which has been actively erupting since 1983
• Mauna Loa, which last erupted in 1984 and is building for a new eruption in the next few years
• Loihi, which erupted in 1996

Physical Characteristics of Kilauea

Kilauea is a broad shield volcano and it sits next to the southeastern slope of Mauna Loa (which is still considered active). At the summit, there is a basin-shaped depression called a caldera which covers an area of approximately 20 square miles. Within the caldera, on the southwestern side, is Halemaumau crater. This is the main area of volcanic activity on the summit of Kilauea.

The Pu'u 'O'o eruption is on the Southeast Rift zone and lava continues to pour down to the shoreline which is adding more land mass to the island every day.

Destruction Caused by Kilauea

Kilauea destroyed the former Visitor Center at Volcanoes National Park and an ancient Hawaiian temple.

In 1990, lava flows wiped out the towns of Kalapana and Kaimu plus Kalapana Black Sand Beach and Kaimu Bay and a portion of State Route 130.

Ongoing Monitoring of Kilauea

The US Geological Survey publishes daily reports of activity on Kilauea and has a photo gallery and webcams.

Because the lava flow is slow, residents of the targeted areas are given sufficient notice to evacuate.

The air quality is monitored and depending on the wind conditions, areas within and adjacent to Volcanoes National Park can be closed down.

Sources:

• US Geological Survey
• Hawaii Center for Volcanology
• Wikipedia