Kīlauea Update, Friday, August 10, 2018, Photo tour for Kelsey and Owen...

K&O:  With all best wishes, and warmest aloha, for a long and happy marriage!

The air here at Keaʻau ma uka is still and heavy.  The icky ikiiki is not my favorite, unless Iʻm standing under a waterfall...[ikiiki = stifling humidity].

But, the really really good thing is the weathers have knocked down the Keauhou fire on Maunaloa, and Kīpukakī was apparently spared.  Whew.  I hope.  From the HVO M1 cam this morning, looks like no smoke:

And the basics:  

Tilt still looks steady.  No big + or -.

ʻŌlaʻi are still still.  The one yesterday as I was writing is shown on the attached.  To me, its depth shows that mayhaps it was a structural adjustment, or an aftershock of the M6.9 in the same area on May 4, 2018.  And the 12 earthquakes in the last day are countable on the map!  Amazing.  Not theyʻre countable, but that theyʻre so few...

 And the HVO Flow Map and stats:

And the HVO Thermal Map:

Please, please note that The Eruption is NOT over.  "small lava pond in crater" "...ocean entry point(s)".  It is NOT over.  Please, again, go read Macdonald and Eatonʻs report of the 1955 eruption.  Pele moved here and there, and exhibited many different moods.  Itʻs heartbreaking to watch Big Island Video News videos, especially of residents of Leilani Estates testifying of their desires to return to their homes, but...sigh...

USGS, Macdonald and Eaton, Kīlauea in 1955

Mr Durginʻs cam just after sunrise. F8 fumesteamy.

OK then.  Mick Kalber of Tropical Visions Video, posted on Vimeo:

Mick Kalber on Paradise Helicopters, 080918, flying Pohoiki to Kaluapele

Here are screenshots of the video, flown just after sunrise:

Pele is still perilously close, but note the black sand beach at the breakwater!

The steaming fissure system, early morning after rain, view uprift.  Biggest steamfume is F8.  Kaliʻu, noted in chant, is the puʻu at lower left.

Puʻuʻōʻō in foreground.  Maunaloa above it, with puff of Halemaʻumaʻu steam.  Slope of Maunakea at horizon right.

Only steam and gases emanate from Puʻuʻōʻō.

Kaluapele!  Puff of steam as seen from Puʻuʻōʻō.  To is right, tendrils of tradeblown smoke of the Keauhou fire.  Small wedge of Kapāpala pasture too, just below and L of "TVV".  Recently exposed White South Sulphur Bank at left wall of caldera.  And at bottom, in shadow, Kīlauea Iki partially filled with fogvapors.  

As it was similarly, below, from the Kīlauea Iki Overlook, early morning on December 9, 2014.  A wonder. Dome of Puʻupuaʻi at center. Photo by friend MS, and in background, slope of Maunaloa, plume of Halemaʻumaʻu and band of tan vog.  We glimpsed the scene and stopped to record it on our way to walk to Keanakākoʻi.  Thankful thankful for memories...alohaʻāinaaloha!

And with that, Iʻll be back writing to you on Tuesday, August 14.

As always, with aloha,

BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com

Kīlauea Update, Thursday, August 9, 2018, Briefly, then...

A few notes before getting started...

Iʻll be away from my desk much of the weekend attending to domestica, and having a bit of fun.  Will be here briefly tomorrow morning, then again on Tuesday the 14th.

If you live in Hawaiʻi:  VOTE!  VOTE!  VOTE!!!  Actually, please, just vote once.  

No Vote..No Grumble...

Friend Sig Zane has a benefit for ʻohana in Puna:

Keahialaka shirt (Nice!)

Keahialaka Tee 

GoKōkua!  And no shame wear bright colors...

OK?

peach cirrus blue sky

quiet in the aftercalm

still we await...what?

Things volcanic seem to be oia mau nō this morning...as usual.  Pelehonuamea bubbles and gurgles quietly in Keahialaka, the earth is quiet, skies clear, life, at the moment, is good.

The walls of the puʻu

THATʻS what we await:  an ʻōlaʻi...at 651a, a kinda gentle rocker.  Perhaps itʻll show up online before I post this.

Nothing like a little LIVE...From Volcano...commentary...

ummm  The walls of the puʻu in places are red:  tephra (cinder, spatter, reticulite...pele that falls from the sky) is oxidized (like rusty iron) because prolonged heat and exposure to gases, rains, steams, etc., turn the iron in the pele red.

The spillway at the bottom was active May 27 to August 4, 2018, though Fissure 8 was born at 2320hrs (1120p) on May 6, 2018.

Below, a photo by Marco Garcia of AP, fuming cracks in Leilani Estates, At the Beginning...

Here at Kaluapele this morning, pretty gorgeous...steamy in brisk cool air and high humidity.  Those peach cirrus too...

And the Tilt is tilting...seems to be inflating a bit, though keep in mind the scales on the "Y" axes, the vertical lines, sometimes change in scale to accommodate rapidity (or slowness) of inflation or deflation.

Gotta run, and the ʻōlaʻi hasnʻt been posted yet, but this just in from CD:

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reports a local earthquake on the south flank of Kilauea has occurred at 6:51 am. The earthquake had a reported magnitude of 4.3. 

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reports there is no tsunami threat to the island of Hawai`i.

Again, there is NO Tsunami Threat to the island of Hawaii.

Till tomorrow...

As always, with aloha,

BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com

Kīlauea Update, Wednesday, 080818, Slacking...

Nah...not slacking...But after yesterdays extravaganza, I needed a bit of a breather.  That one took a LONG time to assemble.  But here we are, mostly inspired by a photo sent me by MS.  A WOW! if ever there was one.  How clear!  There are sometimes reasons to wait (and be patient) even if those reasons arenʻt always apparent.

Photo was taken by Jason Ozbolt (MAHALO!), yesterday, August 7, 2018 at 1145a.
And below is my annotated version.  Dates are those of lava flows.  And Iʻd almost swear I can see a bit of Haleakalā at the bottom of the left shoulder of Maunakea.

Itʻd be a sad day if Kīpukakī and Kīpukapuaulu were to be lost...Both areas are home to rare native species and are very special places indeed.  As of 1p today, 3,205 acres have burned.  Auē!

The photo looks like a big Cut and Paste scheme.  Weʻll just put in this big grey collapsed thing and see what they say...   Me?  I am still pūʻiwa.  That new pali on the "floor" of Kaluapele looks to be taller than Palikapuokamohoalii.  Man!  Oh...Kamohoaliʻi, a shark deity, is a brother of Pele.  He guided the family on their waʻa (canoe) when they came up to Hawaiʻi from Kahiki.

And our ʻōlaʻi:  13 in the last day.  I still feel a bit lonely, especially without the exploquakes.  Itʻs almost (note the "almost") too quiet.

Making our way to Puna ma kai...an Update from HVO yesterday at 106p, said that at Puʻuʻōʻō, measurements of SO2 were back down on Monday and Tuesday, from their 1,000+ tons/day measured last Friday.  Good.  And no lava was seen in the lua there.

But, at Keahialaka, Pelehonuamea continues her work.  A small lake, and an equally small plume of uahi ʻawa were present yesterday.  

And, the boat ramp at Pohoiki remains.  And our breath is still bated...Never ever assume or take things for granted.  Jusʻ gotta wait anʻ see...

And before I move on to other things in my life today, please note that friend SigZane has a fundraiser for ʻohana of Puna.  Ola Keahialaka!!!

Keahialaka buttondown aloha shirt

Keahialaka short sleeve t shirt

GoKōkua!!! Before they sell out!

As always, with aloha,

BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com

Kīlauea Update, Tuesday, August 7, 2018, Next....

OK, people...  We wake up (this morning at 330.  Who knows why?), have some coffee (black, please), and wonder, wonder, wonder...

Pause, lull, respite, pau?, She going start again?, When? Where? When the Park going open?  Whatʻs up with Puʻuʻōʻō? Why?  How come?  Going get hurricane?  How big?  The Fire on Maunaloa.  Still burning?  Where going?

Who knows????

Talking with friend AM yesterday, we agreed that weʻre kind of asea.  That after ALL the activity of the last three months, now, ironically, life is (almost) too quiet.  We got used to the energy in the air.  And yes, those who know me understand that Iʻm not inclined to get onboard with crystals, and auras, and what-la, but... there were palpable energies in the air and underfoot since May.  My entire body was slightly tense.  Waiting and wondering, next...next ʻōlaʻi (when, how big), next collapse (how much, where), next lava flow (where, how fast, how extensive), whatʻll pele inundate next, where will the road crack next?

Though Iʻve been watching and learning from Pele for 40+ years, the main thing Iʻve learned is that Sheʻll do what Sheʻs going to do on her own schedule, at her own pace.  We are powerless.  We fight, we lose.  Trying to answer Why? is fruitless, because the answer is, Because.

So we wait, we observe, we talk with those who also observe.  We read, we study, we try to understand, we make notes, lots and lots of notes, and we live our lives.  

Down at Keahialaka, the glow remains, and I imagine that pele is still oozing there and here, pulled ma kai by gravity.  The last dribbles, cooling and clotting.  Pohoiki remains.  For now.  If indeed this luaʻi pele is over, then Yay!  Just gotta clean the road by MacKenzie (not that much, I think), and weʻre good to go.  Fish, surf...and, the cool thing is that the new little lae (the protruding point) provides extra protection to the boat ramp.  If IF if pele remains as is.

But, if pele reactivates ma uka, who knows where sheʻll go?

This from Bruce Omori of Extreme Exposure, taken yesterday.  His images are stunning, and provide us with excellent interpretive opportunities:

ExtremeExposure, Bruce Omori

Then from HVO:

And, thanks to Mr Durginʻs cam, this morning weʻre still able to see dawnglow.

Here are a couple videos.  First from Mick Kalber of Tropical Visions Video, via his Vimeo page:

August 5, 2018, Sunday, Fissure 8 slows...

Then from HVO yesterday, August 6, 2018

HVO aerial video, Fissure 8, August 6, 2018

Moving Uprift to Puʻuʻōʻō:

Another from Bruce Omori, looking uprift from the fuming Fissure 8.  Note line of steam emanating from fissures.  Green is the Puna Geothermal Venture facility.

Then, at Puʻuʻōʻō:

The wisp of steamgas is blown by trades.  This is the cam (see the shadow of the tripod?) on Puʻuhalulu (roaring thundering hill) formed during the early phases of the Puʻuʻōʻō eruption in the early 1980ʻs.  A tiny wedge of Maunaloa at the upper right.

Itʻs been noted in HVO Updates that Puʻuʻōʻō has been degassing intermittently for a few weeks. a combination of steam and SO2, recently a little more than 1,000 tons of SO2 per day.  That amount is higher than seen from Puʻuʻōʻō in several years.  

Iʻm recalling from the recesses of my crowded brain, that Puʻuʻōʻō can sometimes be a chimney, allowing steam and magmatic gases from the underlying dike to escape.  Maybe if the LERZ (Lower East Rift Zone) is clogged, gases escape easiest from Puʻuʻōʻō, which, remember, was the primary vent for much of 35 years, and likely has a well-developed connection to the supplying dike.

And at the Summit Region of Kīlauea:

Letʻs start with ʻōlaʻi.  First, those for the last Day.  10.  Ten.  Ten earthquakes.  And we can easily count them.

Then, those for the last Month:  15,527:  A storm of confetti.  Remember to refer to the Legend for age Times.  See the lone Red one as above?  No wonder some of us miss the company.  Especially of our exploquakes, those of the M5.3 No-Tsunami-Generated.  I had come to look forward to them and their unique motions.  Go figure.

Then the Tilt:

Down at the ERZ, stepping downward, deflating...

 And below, at the Summit, 8/5-7/18.  The microradian scale on the vertical "Y" axis at the left is from [+1.5 to -1.5], and was apparently adjusted to smaller increments so we can see smaller changes, thus the jittery appearance of the line [thanks, bs].

Below, for comparison, the same instrument, 8/4-6/18, with a scale of [+12 to -2] on the "Y" axis.  "X" axis times on both are the same.

Here, a general overview, annotated by me, of Kaluapele.  USGS photo yesterday morning.  Spectacular, noeuahi-free skies.  I wonder how long itʻll take us to get used to the view?

The two images below are first, from GoogleEarth, and the second, also from yesterdays flight by USGS, also annotated.  They are at slightly different angles, but of the same general scene.  The white cloud in the first is uahi ʻawa (sulphur smoke) from Halemaʻumaʻu.  Good thing GoogleEarth still has old images so we can still see the Halemaʻumaʻu Parking Lot.

Above, especially note the new pali of the newly exposed South Sulphur Bank.

Here, an interesting Report by NPS and then an article in The Hawaiian Journal of History. 

2006 NPS Crater Rim Cultural Landscape Inventory

HJH, Jackson, "Bombs in a National Park..."

Especially in the NPS report, itʻs amazing how frequently roads were built, rebuilt, repaired, rebuilt again; all after damage by significant ʻōlaʻi and/or inundation by pele.

What if we stopped doing that?  What if we let the damage be, let Pelehonuamea and relatives do their work, and stay out of the way?  What if?  After all, She was here long before us and shall remain long after we are gone.

Below, from, I think NPS, is an image of portion of Crater Rim Drive.  If memory serves, this is on the flat of Akanikōlea, view more or less toward the east and Keanakākoʻi.  eb and I had the pleasure of walking here frequently, enjoying views of Kaluapele, an ʻenuhe (the counterpart of one further along in Kaʻū), noe ʻawa rising from Halemaʻumaʻu, Maunakea and the puʻu Poliahu and Waiau, both with similar faces, and the steep, dark, Haukea; the varied clouds, winds, mists and rains....and soaring koaʻe kea.  How we miss it all...

Just to the left of the image above is a little prominence, a specific place at Akanikōlea, the place we are told Kamapuaʻa stood and taunted Pele as she resided in Halemaʻumaʻu.  I had always been puzzled about Why? Why there?  Because having stood at that edge, I couldnʻt see inside Halemaʻumaʻu.  It was too far away, I thought.  Or so I thought. NOW I understand.

And the fire on Maunaloa, in Keauhou and Kapāpala, sadly still burns. As seen at noon today on the M1 cam on the HVO site, view toward Maunaloa.

Winds are brisk today, though rains from approaching Hector may help put it out.

Speaking of which:

Windy.com

is EXCELLENT!  The bar at the bottom is a calendar.  Scroll to view The Future.  Pretty handy.

I apologize for the length of this one.  Sometimes cannot help.

OK.  Till tomorrow, as long as the lights stay on.

As always, with aloha,

BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com

Kīlauea Update, Monday, August 6, 2018, However tempting it is...

Number 87.  A nice cool breeze this morning, rustling leaves of ʻōlapa, clear skies, and quiet.

Quiet.  The quaking earth has calmed for now.  Mr Durginʻs cam shows pre-sunrise scattered clouds.  No roiling plume of uahi ʻawa.  Merely a wisp.  

But all may not be as it seems.  But.  There was still a glow earlier.

Iʻm pretty sure that the camera overcompensates and makes it appear that F8 is fountaining.  But see how grainy and pixellated the image is?  Time will tell.

Pele likes to linger.  As desperately as we want her to go, we have no idea what her plans are.  Please recall, if you can, the early phases or episodes of the Puʻuʻōʻo eruption.  From 1983 to 1986.

Puʻuʻōʻō Episodes

Forty-seven (47) times.  Start.  Stop.  Start.  Stop.  Three and a half (3.5) years.  Those are the episodes that made mostly ʻaʻā flow through Royal Gardens, never lasting long enough to reach the Pacific.  

So please be patient with her.  And with yourself and your family and friends.  Emotions run the gamut.  Up down all over the place.  As I was told repeatedly by Ma:  Boy, be patient.  Iʻm still trying to be.  Weʻve all been through a lot.  An unimaginable lot.  And already it kinda seems like a dream.  Did that really happen?  Maybe thatʻs one reason I write:  So that Iʻll remember.  So that itʻll help you remember.  So go write.  Use whatever tools you have at your disposal.  Write.  Something.  And share it with whomever.  Write letters, put in envelopes, affix stamps, mail them.  No one seems to do that anymore.  Go. Try.  Memories, impressions, feelings, write them down now before the memories fade.  Go.

If youʻve ever been to Pohoiki, write.  What was it like?  The sun, the water, the sounds, the smell, the winds.  How did you feel?  Or Kapoho, or Waiapele, or Ahalanui, or Pūʻālaʻa, or Champagne Pond, or the forests of Keahialaka, or Jaggar Museum, or the Halemaʻumaʻu Overlook, or the Halemaʻumaʻu Trail, or...

And during this respite, this pause, we wait and pray.  I pray that at least Pohoiki will remain.  But if it doesnʻt, we have memories.  I pray that skies will clear.  That our resources will be better cared for, that people will be more aware.  That more of you will

be outside...paying attention       noho i waho...a maliu

That weʻll all be more respectful, thoughtful, compassionate and caring.

Tilt at the LERZ is still declining.

At the summit, it appears to be more stable.

It appears.  And our ʻōlaʻi, our incessant earthquakes are...recently nearly absent?  That makes me uncomfortable.  How can we go from hundreds a day to 29?  How can?

And the Last 2 Hours, the Red ones:  Where?

We must all remain vigilant.  And cautiously optimistic.  Thatʻs a good thing to be.  Cautious.
But optimistic.  Even as fires burn, and the earth quakes, and Pele inundates, and the ground collapses, we must be optimistic.  

Below is the fire yesterday on the slope of Maunaloa, ma uka of the Volcano Golf Course, on Keauhou, maybe in the Park on the Maunaloa Road, and maybe on Kapāpala Ranch, that green area on the left.

We must be optimistic and care for each other and our lands.  Always.

alohaʻāinaaloha

Till tomorrow, always, with aloha,

BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com

Kīlauea Update, Sunday, August 5, 2018. No...You may NOT begin to celebrate!

be outside...pay attention       noho i waho...a maliu

Or if cannot, be attentive to tools at your disposal:  websites, webcams, photos, graphs, maps, and, most importantly the knowledge held in the space between your ears, and in your naʻau, your gut.

We have entered a distinctly different phase of our eruption.  Pelehonuamea is doing what she has done for centuries, for millenia...start, stop, pause, there, here, maʻō, maʻaneʻi.  She knows what sheʻs doing.  We mortals are clueless.  Said it before...we can track, analyze, collect all the data we want, but try figure out what the next minute, hour, days hold...good luck.

It bears repeating:  Study history.  Go read the papers Iʻve posted and others you find, study eruptions of the past, or at least find out solid information from those who know and understand.  And no, Social Media is not the best source.  But some on there are apparently very akamai.  Just gotta figure out who.

I was looking at Hawaii Tracker yesterday.  GO!  Lots of excellent photos and video.  And a few good comments in the vein of "Donʻt count your chickens before theyʻre hatched".

Hawaii Tracker

Ikaika Marzo posted a video there just before 6a today.  GoLook.  We can see that Pele is still flowing into the Pacific, tussling with her older sister Nāmakaokahaʻi.  Ikaika said that pele is right by Elevators, a surf spot at Pohoiki.

Hereʻs a thing:  Even if Fissure 8 stops, or is greatly diminished, the inside of kahawai pele is still hot and molten.  Gravity will continue to pull the flow ma kai.  Some of the ʻaʻā is 60 feet or more thick.  Thatʻs a lot of mass, and will take months or years to cool completely.  Fissure 8 and the 8-mile-long or so kahawai pele (the lava channel) contain a LOT of pele.  

Stop.  Breathe.  Go have Brunch.  She may not be pau yet.  As long as there is red, as long as pōhaku (rocks) move, as long as uahi ʻawa and noeuahi linger, as long as there are ʻōlaʻi, as long as there is the possibility, however remote, that Sheʻll wake from her nap, the eruption is not over.

And when Pele rests, whenever and for however long that is, we must rethink our actions, our perceptions, our views of the world.  Donʻt expect that everything will return to "Normal".  It wonʻt.  And it shouldnʻt.  If we blithely go on as if nothing happened, rebuilding roads, rebuilding homes, replanting farms, rebuilding our lives as if nothing happened in the last three months to cause us to rethink our priorities, then we have a problem.  And yes, thatʻs the collective, the Royal, "We".  We must not return to the more More MORE mentality that seems to infect many.  THINK:  Quality of Life, Sustʻāinability [thanks cn], Limits.  

Sustʻāinability Tee: Hawaiian Force

And Craigʻs design commemorating Pele and her current works:

E Pele E Tee: Hawaiian Force

Not everyone can or should have everything NOW.  Cannot.  When places exceed their Carrying Capacity, and resources are irreversibly, irreparably damaged or destroyed, we simply gotta Stop and Reassess. 

OK, Bob...Move on...

Starting up here at Kaluapele.  Our ʻōlaʻi.  All, then Last Two Days:

Please note, that for now, for now...Red is nearly missing.  Red=Last 2 Hours

And please, please remember that Kaluapele has undergone a renovation, the pūʻiwa-ness of which we have not seen in our lifetimes.  Itʻll take a long while to heal.  And the gate to the Park simply cannot and must not be thrown open so life can continue as it was.  Cannot.

Pele is saying to the National Park Service:  You folks had this place for 100 Years, you had a nice party in 2016, now Iʻm taking it back.  Staff eligible for retirement must retire.  They must.  A new, visionary, inclusive Team with abiding aloha, and broad and intimate knowledge of the Park and its resources must meet, talk, share, learn from one another, and design our collective future.  Like patting a good dog on the head, too often we pay lip service to kūpuna and to mākua, those with decades of knowledge, experiences, and who hold deep aloha for place, and, after meeting, we send them on their way.  Please, no longer.

At the forefront of any discussion must be alohaʻāinaaloha.  Itʻs the aloha we share for the ʻāina, and the ʻāina for which we have great aloha. If we cannot do that, openly, inclusively and without ego, we are doomed to fail.

ONE.  One.  Little.  Red.  Dot.  See it?  But...Do Not become complacent!

So here are graphs of Tilt, and my interpretations of them:
  
I observe.  I am not a seismologist or a geophysicist.  Again, up is Inflation (more magma coming in), and down is Deflation (magma leaving).  Flat is steady and even.  No Change.

Below, Uēkāhuna, at the summit, this morning at 534a.  

We posted and noted yesterday about sensingseeing flatness.  After three months of a downhill run.  And what we see below, I think, is just that:  What we see below.  ʻŌlaʻi have diminished in numbers perhaps because Pele, beneath the floor of Kaluapele, has slowed her descent, and Hiʻiaka has concurrently slowed her digging, and those consequent adjustments and settling motions have slowed too.  The spikes are M3ish earthquakes.

Down on the East Rift Zone at Puʻuʻōʻō, under which pele passes on her way to Keahialaka:

The first is what Tilt at Puʻuʻōʻō looked like in late June.  This pattern continued till Friday or so.  Pretty flattish.  Big spike = exploquake.

Then this, also from this morning at 534a, at Puʻuʻōʻō.  Note that the decline started on Friday sometime.  Again, line going down = magma leaving system and likely not being replenished.  Flattish since just after 6p yesterday.

Flattish.  I like flattish.  Some may think that boring, but right now, in these times, I Vote for Flattish.  At least with my understanding, however flawed it might be, of whatʻs going on.

And yes, I find myself holding my breath.  Then willing myself to exhale.  Slowly.  Because during my 40+ years of paying attention to these things, weʻve seen events take unexpected turns.  And predictions that proved fruitless.  And weʻve mostly learned to try, as difficult as it can be at times, to simply Let Her Be and Pay Attention.

Hereʻs the HVO Update, posted yesterday at 1036p, very well written and succinct.

HVO Update, SAT, August 4, 2018, 1036p

A photo of the kahawai pele, from HVO yesterday, Saturday, August 4, 2018, in the morning.  Note the exposed banks of the stream, and the chunky appearance of the surface.  And the thinnish cloud of uahi ʻawa (fume) emanating from F8.

Then from Mr Durginʻs cam this morning.  When Sheʻs really active, the orange would be big, bright and white.  But the orange, to me, shows that Sheʻs still at home.

Time to tentatively and slowly exhale.  Stay tuned...

As always, with aloha,

BobbyC