Kīlauea Update, Tuesday, July 10, 2018, of Beauty Evanescent and Deleting ʻoʻop Files

Going and going, like that bunny...maybe because I was born in the Year of the Rabbit?  Or not...  Iʻll be taking another few days off to attend to domestic duties, go to appointments, research, visit, etc.  Youʻll next read from me the coming weekend.

Questions may be sent to me directly:  maniniowali@gmail.com

The part about Deleting Files, then, the Beauty Evanescent...

I had a very productive chat yesterday with one of my kumu.  We shared, chuckled, and I trust both of us learned something new.  For me, it was a reminder that Pelehonuamea is molten lava.  Thatʻs her charge.  Flowing, fountaining, sputtering, draining, thatʻs all her energy.  

Earthquakes, our ʻōlaʻi, belong in the realm of Kāne.  More precisely, Kānelūhonua.  Kāne of the shaking earth.  Different energy, different deity.  Many parts of these discussions are beyond my ken, but I question, review, question again, often very publicly.  And then I sometimes retract (not retreat, necessarily, but retract).  So it is with "ʻōlaʻi ʻōniu pele".  Please delete that phrasename from your files.  For now, weʻll stick with exploquake to describe that sensation when ash (now rockdust) is exhaled from Halemaʻumaʻu, while we muse mull and consider another more appropriate phenomename.  There is a most excellent candidate, far more appropriate and descriptive than my sincere, but kinda lame, effort.  Please stay tuned for more info....ahhhhh The Suspense...

As is this, not my favorite time, The Suspense anticipating the next exploquake.  House periodically trembles, thankfully at bearable intensities.  For several several hours it continues, then the next exploquake and then respite.

Sharing bits of info:

Please read the latest HVO Volcano Watch column.  This one about Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera).  And if youʻre so inclined, they have LOTS more of interest.

Volcano Watch, July 5, 2018

Below, there I was at Punaluʻu (the pond also known as Queens Bath), March 31, 1987.  Indelible memories of that night.

The ʻōlaʻi for the past 24 hours as of 10a this morning.  I note with a bit of concern, the several M3s and that scatter of quakes SE of the collapsing area on the main floor as seen on the screen shot below...

And given the ongoing subsidence at the summit, damage sustained at both HVO and Jaggar Museum, and and and, I have to wonder how long the Summit Webcams will remain operational.  I hope, when the time comes, they can be relocated.  What a valuable service they provide!  Below, a view from the KEcam:

Down to the Lower East Rift Zone (LERZ):

According to various reports and thermal camera images, the channel feeding muliwai a Pele (the lava delta), is undergoing reorganization.  Itʻs perhaps plugged or obstructed near that 90 degree bend at Waiapele, and plumes at ocean entries were or are diminished.  Active flows are spreading laterally.  And as of yesterday, the official Homes Lost Count stands at 700.  Auē....  Other Facts and Figures on the Map above.

Change.  Be ready for anything.  Do Not Become Complacent.

and that Beauty Evanescent:

Always something different.  In the midst of catastrophic change, this, yesterday, from USGS HVO:

Some may be familiar with that phrase in a favorite song by Alfred Alohikea, "Ka ua loku kaulana aʻo Hanalei" "Like the famous pouring rains of Hanalei (on the island of Kauaʻi)".

Ka Ua Loku

Who can forget the 50 inches of rain on April 14-15, 2018 that drenched and flooded the region between Hanalei and Hāʻena on Kauaʻi? Ka ua loku!

And at Keahialaka, maybe 9 inches in a drenching downpour may not sound like much, but the result is Beauty Evanescent:

The flow field, still obviously hot after a downpour, looks kinda like a winter wonderland.

And then add a puahiohio māhu (whirlwind of steam) for decorative effect.   

We used to often see those whirlwinds hanging from the ocean entry plume when conditions were just right.  Temperature differences between surface and cloud, and winds, and in this case the rising steam from downpours, all combine just right.

Note that the stream of pele is steamless.  Itʻs so hot that rain evaporates before it even reaches peleskin.  While all that steam may look beautiful, itʻs also deadly.  A hot, whiteout fog disorients, can scald skin and lungs, and is one of those rare but potentially deadly volcanic hazards.  All the more reason to Stay Away!

OK...I think thatʻll do it for the time being...Please stay tuned.

As always, with aloha,

BobbyC