Maunaloa Swelling Slowly Continues
2:47 AM · Apr 17, 2021A short video recap of monitoring signals and changes on Maunaloa last week, including: -GPS distance across summit switches to extension from temporary contraction since end of March -Ground tilt shows a small, but similar change -No SO2 emissions, fumarole temperatures stable below 100 degrees C / 212 deg F -220 small-magnitude earthquakes, all less than M2.5, 188 of them below the summit and upper-elevation flanks at depths of less than 8 km / 5 mi below ground level -Earthquakes spike 1 week ago on April 9 with ~70 events, otherwise all days since show background levels below ~30 events per day Monitoring signals and recent InSAR imagery suggest that magma continues to fill slowly underground, triggering the observed seismic adjustments on Maunaloa’s flanks over the past few weeks. Cycles of summit filling and flank adjustment are common on the volcano, and a switch back to the filling phase is consistent with GPS data. Check our live stream for a more comprehensive look at these signals. #Maunaloa
Awesome update, Philip
Apr 17, 2021
Can't wait. I love your videos!! Thank you Dane and Philip!
Apr 17, 2021
If Maunaloa erupts where would the flows go?..is that a dumb question..or has anybody else asked this? I remember a time when it did erupt (in the 70's) and it was 4 miles away from Hilo? Thanks for your reports Outstanding!!
Apr 19, 2021
It is a big mountain and a big area, but typically we would expect the first activity at the summit. If an eruption ultimately progresses to the flanks, as was the case in 1984 (after a 1975 summit eruption), then it becomes much more of a threat to specific sectors on the island. Ultimately, the best we can do is to wait and see where the eruption is coming from to anticipate where the flows might go.
Apr 20, 2021