(ABOVE PHOTO) This satellite image, courtesy the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, was captured by the Advanced Land Imager instrument onboard NASA’s Earth Observing 1 satellite. Although this is a false-color image, the color map has been chosen to mimic what the human eye would expect to see. Bright red pixels depict areas of very high temperatures, and show active lava. White areas are clouds. The image shows that the flow remains active. The newly cleared portion of Chain of Craters Road is also faintly visible near the coastline.

NEWS BRIEFS

• The narrow finger that was advancing along the south edge of the flow has now become the leading edge of the flow. It has advanced approximately 100 yards since yesterday.
• Smoke conditions were moderate this morning with a south wind causing both smoke and vog conditions to extend across the lower Puna to Hilo areas.

PRIMARY SOURCES

This morning’s assessment shows that the narrow finger that was advancing along the south edge of the flow has now become the leading edge of the flow and has advanced approximately 100 yards since yesterday. The original flow front also remains active however moving very slowly and only advanced approximately 25 yards since yesterday. All flow activity remains approximately 0.6 miles from the Apa’a Street area near the Pahoa Transfer Station. There was very little burning activity and smoke conditions were moderate this morning with a south wind causing both smoke and vog conditions to extend across the lower Puna to Hilo areas. .

Current flow activity does not pose an immediate threat to area communities and no evacuation is needed at this time. Area residents will be given adequate notice to safely evacuate should that be necessary.

The public is reminded that the flow is not visible and cannot be accessed from any public areas. Access to the Kaohe Homesteads subdivision will remain restricted to area residents only. Hawaii County Civil Defense on Oct. 12

A Civil Defense overflight this morning found that the breakout that has been advancing about 80 m (90 yd) per day along the southeast edge of the flow since early last week has overtaken the former leading edge of the flow. The former flow tip also advanced about 20 m (25 yd). Civil Defense reports little burning, however, south winds were carrying smoke and vog to lower Puna and Hilo. HVO geologists will conduct investigations of the leading edges of the flow on foot today.

Puʻu ʻŌʻō Observations: Over the past 24 hours, instruments at Puʻu ʻŌʻō did not record any significant net change in ground tilt nor seismic tremor. Glow was visible overnight above several out gassing openings in the crater floor, but there were no significant changes in activity within the crater. The most recent sulfur-dioxide emission-rate measurement for the East Rift Zone was 450 tonnes per day (from all sources) on October 9, 2014.

Summit Observations: There was no significant change in ground tilt over the past day. The lava lake level fluctuated slightly during the last day, as usual, but stayed around 60 meters below the rim of the Overlook crater (the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu). USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory on Oct. 12

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