Kīlauea’s ongoing summit eruption entered Episode 52 at 19:10 HST (05:10 UTC on July 29), July 28, 2026, as sustained lava fountaining began from the north vent inside Halemaʻumaʻu crater, prompting the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) to raise the volcano’s Alert Level from ADVISORY to WATCH and its Aviation Color Code from YELLOW to ORANGE.
Kīlauea’s episode 49 eruption began at 09:36 HST (19:36 UTC) on June 14, 2026, at Halemaʻumaʻu crater and ended abruptly at 17:05 HST (03:05 UTC on June 15) after 7.5 hours of continuous lava fountaining.
Episode 46 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption at Kīlauea ended at 17:22 HST on May 5, 2026 (03:22 UTC on May 6), after about 9 hours of continuous lava fountaining from the north vent at the summit. USGS lowered the Volcano Alert Level from Watch to Advisory and the Aviation Color Code from Orange to Yellow after ground and aviation hazards decreased.
Lava fountains rising to 300 m (1 000 feet) and an ash plume reaching 5 000 m (16 500 feet) marked the onset of episode 45 at Kīlauea on April 23, 2026, triggering an ashfall advisory for Kaʻū. Activity remained confined within Halemaʻumaʻu as fountain heights stabilized after an early peak.
Tephra up to 25 cm (10 inches) was reported in the Volcano Golf Course subdivision near Kīlauea, Hawaiʻi, during episode 44 of the ongoing summit eruption, which ended at 05:41 UTC on April 10, 2026, after 8 hours and 31 minutes of lava fountaining. The eruption generated 5.8 million m³ (7.5 million cubic yards) of lava, while ash and Pele’s hair reached as far as Hilo, prompting warnings and temporary closures.
Kīlauea entered eruptive episode 39 at 20:10 HST on December 23, 2025 (06:10 UTC on December 24) as lava fountains rose from twin vents on the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu crater. Within about 95 minutes, fountain heights increased from 10 m (30 feet) to more than 420 m (1 400 feet), with lava flows covering 10–20% of the crater floor by 21:14 HST and a plume reaching 6 000 m (20 000 feet).
Episode 34 of the ongoing Kīlauea eruption ended at 07:03 HST (17:03 UTC) on October 1, 2025, after 6 hours of lava fountaining from two vents in Halemaʻumaʻu crater at the volcano’s summit, Hawaii. Lava fountains reached up to 400 m (1 300 feet), erupting about 9 million m³ of lava at a peak effusion rate of 500 yd³/s. The eruption filled much of the western crater floor before activity ceased.
At 01:15 UTC on September 11, 2023 (15:15 HST, September 10), the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) identified new eruptive activity at Kīlauea’s summit within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, based on webcam images and field reports. The eruption was preceded by intense seismic activity and rapid uplift at the summit.
This video, captured by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory’s KWcam on the northwest rim of the caldera, shows the opening phase of the eruption that began within Halemaʻumaʻu crater in the early morning of June 7, 2023 (LT).
At approximately 14:44 UTC (04:44 HST) on June 7, 2023, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) detected a glow in Kīlauea summit webcam images indicating that an eruption has commenced within Halemaʻumaʻu crater in Kīlauea’s summit caldera, within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.
