Hawaii’s Mauna Loa, the world’s largest active volcano, began erupting on Sunday for the first time since 1984, ending its longest quiet period in recorded history. The night sky above Hawaii’s largest island glowed a hellish red as bright, hot lava sprang forth at the volcano’s summit at around 11:30 p.m. local time on Sunday (0930 GMT Monday).
The lava is contained within the summit and does not threaten Hawaiians living downslope for now, the U.S. Geological Service (USGS) said. The service warned residents on Monday that volcanic gases and fine ash may drift their way.
The eruption began late Sunday night in the summit caldera of the volcano on the Big Island following a series of closely spaced, fairly large earthquakes, Ken Hon, the scientist-in-charge at the Hawaiian Volcanos Observatory, said at an early morning news conference. Magma moved to the surface, although lava flows were contained within the summit area and weren’t threatening nearby communities.
There have been some photos provided to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory that suggest that the south end of the caldera has overflowed, causing some lava flows a few kilometers (miles) out of the caldera, Hon said. In some previous eruptions, lava has overflowed the caldera but never made it close to populated areas.
Mauna Loa rises 13,679 feet (4,169 meters) above the Pacific Ocean, part of the chain of volcanoes that formed the islands of Hawaii. It last erupted in March and April of 1984, sending a flow of lava within 5 miles (8.05 km) of Hilo, the island’s largest city.
Hawaii’s Emergency Management Agency said it had opened two shelters on the island as a precaution but also emphasized that there are no signs that lava will threaten populated areas and that it had not issued any evacuation orders.
About half of all recorded eruptions of Mauna Loa had been confined to the summit, the agency said.
“Right now we are looking at indications, trying to figure out if this is going to be an eruption that remains within the summit of Mauna Loa or moves down one of the rift zones either to the southwest and to the northeast,” Hon said.
“We don’t want to try and second guess the volcano,” Hon said. “We have to let it actually show us what it’s going to do and then we inform people of what is happening ASAP.”
There is currently no indication of any migration of the eruption into a rift zone, officials said. A rift zone is where the mountain is splitting apart and the rock is cracked and relatively weak – making it easier for magma to emerge.
During a 1950 eruption, the mountain’s lava traveled 15 miles (24 kilometers) to the ocean in less than three hours.
Tourism is the economic engine for Hawaii, but Roth predicted few problems for those on vacation during the eruption.
“If it does go into one of the rift zones, it’s going to impact a very small area of the island,” he said. “It will be spectacular where it is, but the chances of it really interrupting the visitor industry — very, very slim.”
For some, the eruption might cut down on some travel time, even if there is more vog, or volcanic smog caused by higher sulfur dioxide emissions.
“But the good thing is you don’t have to drive from Kona over to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to see an eruption anymore,” Roth said. “You can just look out your window at night and you’ll be able to see Mauna Loa erupting.” (Reuters/AP)