Episode 16 Has Ended

Episode 16 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption ended at 12:03 p.m. HST on April 2 when high fountaining at the south vent stopped. Fountains from the south vent sustained heights of 600-700 feet (180-210 meters) for over 23 hours, then dropped to less than 300 feet (90 meters) at 9:50 a.m. HST this morning, April 2. Overall, episode 16 lasted just over 37 hours with the last 25 hours and 39 minutes consisting of fountains from the south vent. During episode 16, lava flows covered over 50% of the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu within the southern part of Kaluapele (Kīlauea caldera). Weak winds also resulted in deposition of Pele's hair and tephra in closed areas of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park and on Highway 11 between mile marker 35 and 37 on April 1. Additional details about the eruption were posted earlier in the March 31 Status Report and the April 1 Status Report and the April 1 Daily Update for Kīlauea along with the April 2 Daily Update for Kīlauea. The UWD tiltmeter recorded just over 14 microradians of deflation during episode 16, with 11 microradians lost on the SDH tiltmeter. Deflation rate was constant throughout the first part of the eruption reflecting the stable nature of activity from the south and north vents. The deflation rate slowed slightly after the north vent shut down April 1 at 9:22 p.m. HST. The end of the eruption was coincident with a rapid change in tilt from deflation to inflation at the summit and a decrease in seismic tremor intensity when the fountains ceased at 12:03 p.m. HST. Each episode of Halemaʻumaʻu lava fountaining since December 23, 2024, has continued for at least 13 hours, and up to 8 days, and episodes have been separated by pauses in eruptive activity lasting less than 24 hours to 12 days. Timeline of eruption episodes since December 23, 2024: https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/science/eruption-information Two Kīlauea summit livestream videos are available here: Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii (West Halemaʻumaʻu crater) v1cam and Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii (East Halemaʻumaʻu crater)v2cam No changes have been detected in the East Rift Zone or Southwest Rift Zone. HVO continues to closely monitor Kīlauea and will issue an eruption update tomorrow morning unless there are significant changes before then. Kīlauea Volcano Alert Level/Aviation Color Code remain at WATCH/ORANGE. All current and recent activity is within Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Via USGS Volcanoes