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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Saturday, August 11, 2007

Kilauea lava cuts into ohia forest

Volcano stirring
Activity at Big Island's Kilauea is heightening as the eruption of the island's youngest volcano entered a new phase. Read our stories, see more photos, and see video.

Photo galleryPhoto gallery: Lava overflow at Kilauea
Video: Lava overflows continue on Kilauea overnight

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Science Writer

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

An aerial closeup of fissure D on Kilauea volcano shows it feeding a lava flow that has been heading around the northern side of Kupaiahana.

U.S. Geological Survey

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Kilauea's lavas yesterday were flowing slowly across 20-year-old lavas and through 'ohi'a forest high on the volcano's east rift zone.

"It looks like a coherent flow, but there are a lot of lobes," said Jim Kauahikaua, scientist in charge at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

Most of the new lava is material that is oozing out of the molten core of the main flow in the area to the northeast of the Kupaianaha crater, he said.

Scientists are referring to four active cracks that opened up July 21 between the Pu'u 'O'o cone and the older Kupaianaha vent as Fissures A through D, with D closest to Kupaianaha. A panoramic view of the fissure area is available on the observatory Web site at www.hvo.wr.usgs.gov/cam3/.

Yesterday, only C and D were active, Kauahikaua said, with C occasionally burping up gobs of lava that generally stayed at the fissure. Fissure D, by contrast, fed a lava flow that has been heading around the northern side of Kupaiahana.

"It's mostly 'a'a lava, but some of it looks like it's trying to be pahoehoe," Kauahikaua said. 'A'a is rough, chunky lava, while pahoehoe is more fluid-looking with a surface that is often described as ropey.

Kauahikaua said that volcano scientists believe the vents are being fed by an underground flow of magma that runs through the magma chamber under the Pu'u 'O'o cone and then continues on out the northeast rift zone to the fissures. Scientists have been unable to make accurate calculations of how much lava is being produced, since they can't get a clear assessment of how big the channel is that runs from Fissure D to the end of the flow northeast of Kupaianaha.

Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com.