USGS webcam image showing the west vent in Halemaʻumaʻu and the lava lake, from the northwest rim of the caldera, looking south on August 29, 2022.

• Today marks the 11-month mark in the current, ongoing eruption at the summit of Kīlauea.
• Scientists say all recent eruptive activity has been confined to Halemaʻumaʻu crater. No significant changes have been observed at the summit or in either rift zone.
• The current USGS Volcano Alert Level for Kīlauea remains at WATCH, while the current Aviation Color Code is ORANGE.

From the August 29 update from the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory:

Activity Summary: The summit eruption of Kīlauea Volcano, within Halemaʻumaʻu crater, continued over the past 24 hours. All recent eruptive activity has been confined to the crater. No significant changes have been observed at the summit or in either rift zone.

Halemaʻumaʻu Lava Lake Observations: Eruption of lava from the western vent into the active lava lake and onto the crater floor continued over the past 24 hours. The active part of the lava lake showed continuous surface activity. Surface activity, outside the lava lake, occasionally occurs from breakouts along the margins of the crater. Overflight measurements from August 16, 2022, indicated that the crater floor had seen a total rise of about 137 meters (449 feet), and that 104 million cubic meters (27.5 billion gallons) of lava had been effused since the beginning of this eruption on September 29, 2021.

Summit Observations: Summit tiltmeters recorded relatively little ground deformation over the past 24 hours. Volcanic tremor remains above background levels. A sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission rate of approximately 1,400 tonnes per day (t/d) was measured on August 26, 2022.

Rift Zone Observations: No unusual activity has been noted along the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone; low rates of ground deformation and seismicity continue along both. Measurements from continuous gas monitoring stations downwind of Puʻuʻōʻō in the middle East Rift Zone remain below detection limits for SO2, indicating that SO2 emissions from Puʻuʻōʻō are negligible.

Hazard Analysis: This eruption at Kīlauea’s summit is occurring within a closed area of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. High levels of volcanic gas are the primary hazard of concern, as this hazard can have far-reaching effects downwind. Large amounts of volcanic gas—primarily water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), and sulfur dioxide (SO2)—are continuously released during eruptions of Kīlauea Volcano. As SO2 is released from the summit, it reacts in the atmosphere to create the visible haze known as vog (volcanic smog) that has been observed downwind of Kīlauea. Vog creates the potential for airborne health hazards to residents and visitors, damages agricultural crops and other plants, and affects livestock.