Authorities have not issued an evacuation order, although the summit area and several roads in the region have been closed.
Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano has spewed lava fountains up to 200 feet high and spawned rivers of molten rock, U.S. geologists said Tuesday. Three cracks have formed in the world’s largest active volcano, which erupted for the first time in nearly four decades on Sunday night. Massive clouds of steam and smoke billowed from Mauna Loa, which occupies half of the Big Island archipelago.
“The tallest springs reach between 100 and 200 feet, but many are only a few feet high,” according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). “There’s a cloud of gas visible from the fountains and lava flows from the erupting fissures, and it’s being pushed mostly to the northwest.” Experts estimate that people and property in the area affected by the eruption are not at risk for now.
“The lava flows from the two highest canyons go down the slope, but are stopped about 10 kilometers from Saddle Road (the main road at the base of the northern flank of the mountain).” The lava coming out of the third canyon at about 10,000 feet was also far from the road. In any case, authorities warn that Mauna Loa is a dynamic volcano and they have reported a fourth fissure in recent hours. “Additional fissures may open in the northeast fault zone and lava flows may continue to fall.”
Mauna Loa has been building pressure for years, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), which reported that the eruption was visible from Kona, a city on the west coast of the archipelago’s main island, about 45 miles away.
Although the lava is not yet threatening the population, specialists warn that the winds could carry volcanic gas, fine ash and bits of basalt glass known as Pele’s hair down the hill. These threads, which can measure up to two meters, are formed when strands of lava cool rapidly in the air. They can be very sharp and pose a potential eye and skin injury hazard.
Authorities in Hawaii have not issued an evacuation order, despite the summit area and several highways in the region being closed. Two shelters have been opened as a precaution.
Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on Earth by volume. Its name means “Big Mountain,” and it occupies half of the Big Island and is larger than the rest of the Hawaiian Islands combined. The volcano’s submarine flanks extend several miles into an ocean floor that in turn is pressed down by Mauna Loa’s large mass, raising its summit about 10 miles above its base, according to the USGS.
It has erupted 33 times since 1843, according to the USGS. The most recent, in 1984, lasted 22 days and produced lava flows that reached about seven kilometers from Hilo, a city currently home to about 44,000 people. Kilauea, a volcano located on Mauna Loa’s southeast flank, erupted almost continuously between 1983 and 2019. There has been a small eruption there for months.
Source: La Verdad
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