Kilauea logs 54th lava fountaining episode, then goes quiet as summit magma shifts underground
The US Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory says Kilauea, on Hawaii's Big Island, has produced 54 short lava-fountaining episodes since December 2024, with some fountains reaching 457 metres (Science News). Since a September 30 summit intrusion, HVO reports no sustained Episode 55 fountaining, and it says the irregular inflation and deflation now prevent forecasting the next episode. The alert level remains WATCH/ORANGE.
Bottom line — Kilauea's record 54 episodes now carry no forecast window, and HVO says a new fountain, further intrusion or a stop are all possible.
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Science News reports that repeated fountains within a single eruption have occurred only three times at Kilauea since 1823, and never with this frequency, according to research by Ashton Flinders and colleagues.
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Science News says two prevailing hypotheses for the fountains are dissolved water in magma and a carbon dioxide-rich foam, but the team found relatively little carbon dioxide, which it says undercuts the foam explanation.
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HVO's October 8 update reports both vents glowing overnight with minor north-vent spatter, but it did not confirm sustained fountaining.
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HVO describes a September 30–October 1 dike intrusion within about 300 metres of the surface, which it says occurred north of the established vents across part of Kaluapele.
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Volcanodb.com says HVO's forecast model, based on tiltmeter inflation, correctly predicted each episode from late 2025 until the September pause, but it notes the intrusion broke that pattern.
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Hawaii-Guide notes that the US National Park Service has closed trails and overlooks on the Keanakākoʻi side of the summit, and says visitors should check conditions before driving.
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Maui News, citing HVO spokesperson Katie Mulliken, reports the eruption's episodes come from the same vents, making it one continuous eruption, and that the current eruption is more accessible to viewers than a 1980s eruption that produced 47 episodes over about 3.5 years in a remote area.
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Big Island Video News quotes the National Weather Service warning that tephra and Pele's hair can fall downwind and that road or park closures may occur.