Halemaʻumaʻu Erupts

Shortly after approximately 9:30 p.m. HST on Sunday, December 20, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) detected glow within Halemaʻumaʻu crater at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano. An eruption has commenced within Kīlauea’s summit caldera. The situation is rapidly evolving and HVO will issue another statement when more information is available.

The water lake that was previously forming in Halemaʻumaʻu has disappeared and boiled off as molten lava again made an appearance inside of the crater. Three fissure vents on the wall Halemaʻumaʻu crater are now feeding a growing lava lake.

For more current monitoring info about Kīlauea, see: https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/status.html


Halemaʻumaʻu on December 20, 2020
Halemaʻumaʻu on December 20, 2020 – Photo by Janice Wei