Puʻu ʻŌʻō eruption

Puʻu ʻŌʻō eruption
Name	Puʻu ʻŌʻō
Elevation m	340
Location	Hawaiʻi Island, Hawaiian Islands
Range	Kīlauea
Type	Shield volcano
Age	Holocene
Last eruption	2018 (end of long eruption)

Puʻu ʻŌʻō eruption The Puʻu ʻŌʻō eruption was a prolonged volcanic event on Kīlauea Hawaiʻi Island that produced decades of lava flows, lava lakes, and volcanic gas emissions. Beginning in 1983 and continuing through episodic phases until 2018, the eruption reshaped Puna District, altered coastlines along the Pacific Ocean, and drew extensive attention from agencies such as the United States Geological Survey and institutions including the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the Smithsonian Institution. The event intersected with broader Pacific phenomena like El Niño–Southern Oscillation and involved collaborations among volcanologists, emergency managers, and indigenous organizations.

Overview

The eruption initiated from a new vent on the east rift zone of Kīlauea following increased seismicity and deformation recorded near Puʻu ʻŌʻō and Mauna Ulu. Early phases produced persistent ʻaʻā and pāhoehoe flows that advanced toward communities in Pāhoa, Kalapana, and the Kapoho area, eventually reaching the Pacific Ocean and generating littoral explosions and volcanic plumes monitored by the National Weather Service, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, and the Hawaii County Civil Defense. Major institutions involved in hazard assessment included the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and research groups at the University of California, Berkeley and Pennsylvania State University.

Chronology and phases

The eruption is commonly divided into distinct phases linked to vents and lava-supply variations. Initial onset in 1983 followed rift intrusion episodes seen in Mokuʻāweoweo seismic records and deformation networks maintained by the USGS. The 1983–1997 phase featured high-effusion-rate flows that buried Kalapana and reshaped Kaimū Bay, drawing researchers from Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to study thermal anomalies. From 1997 to the mid-2000s, activity concentrated at summit and flank lava lakes with episodic collapses akin to events documented at Mount St. Helens and Eyjafjallajökull; teams from Brown University and University of Hawaii mapped changing vent morphology. The 2007–2010 interval included summit deflation correlated with Mogi model–style deformation and increased summit earthquakes recorded by networks funded by the National Science Foundation. The final major phase beginning in 2018 involved sudden flank-opening events, seismic swarms, and the draining of summit lava lakes that culminated in significant eruptions along Leilani Estates and widespread evacuations coordinated by Hawaii County authorities.

Volcanology and eruption dynamics

Lava emitted during the eruption ranged from ʻaʻā to pāhoehoe basalt, controlled by volatile content and effusion rate similar to basaltic eruptions at Krafla and Eldfell. Petrological studies by groups at California Institute of Technology and University of Cambridge analyzed melt inclusions and crystal textures, linking magma ascent to conduit processes described in models by George P. L. Walker and Don Swanson. Gas emissions dominated by sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide affected atmospheric chemistry monitored in programs like NASA's airborne campaigns and ground-based spectrometers used by the Ishii Laboratory and the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry. Lava-tectonic interactions produced ground deformation tracked with GPS, InSAR, and tiltmeters deployed by the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and investigators from Stanford University and École normale supérieure.

Impacts and hazards

Flows from Puʻu ʻŌʻō destroyed residential areas including Kalapana Garden, submerged sections of Chain of Craters Road, and inundated coastal ecosystems leading to habitat change documented by National Park Service biologists. Hazards included lava inundation, lava bench collapses at ocean entries causing phreatomagmatic explosions studied alongside events at Kīlauea Iki, and vog (volcanic smog) that affected Hilo, Honolulu, and regional air quality monitored by the Environmental Protection Agency. Economic impacts touched tourism-dependent entities like Hawaii Volcanoes National Park concessionaires, real estate in Puna District, and fisheries near Kapoho Bay, prompting response from Federal Emergency Management Agency, Hawaii State Civil Defense, and NGOs such as The Nature Conservancy.

Monitoring and scientific research

Long-term monitoring used seismic networks, gas sensors, thermal infrared imagery from Landsat and ASTER, and time-series satellite data from MODIS and Sentinel-1 coordinated by research teams at the USGS, NASA Goddard, and the European Space Agency. Interdisciplinary studies involved volcanology groups from University of Alaska Fairbanks, University of Oregon, and University of Minnesota examining eruption triggers, magma chamber dynamics, and emplacement mechanics previously explored in analog studies of Mount Etna and Mauna Loa. Citizen science and outreach efforts partnered with Hawaiʻi Community College and local cultural practitioners to integrate indigenous knowledge represented by organizations such as Office of Hawaiian Affairs into hazard communication.

Cultural and socioeconomic effects

The eruption transformed cultural landscapes central to Hawaiian practice, affecting sites referenced in chants and oral histories preserved by the Hawaiian Historical Society and practitioners at ʻIolani Palace archives. Displacement in neighborhoods like Leilani Estates and Kapoho prompted legal and policy action involving the Hawaii State Legislature and local land management bodies, while artists and writers from University of Hawaii at Hilo and galleries in Honolulu responded to the spectacle. Tourism patterns shifted, influencing operators associated with Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau and local economies in Puna District, even as scientific tourism increased through partnerships between Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and academic institutions.

Category:Kīlauea Category:Volcanic eruptions in the United States