https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-volcano-mauna-loa-erupting-live-updates-7cbdb4d597468702210bc31ef8e0a58c
For those who do pay attention - we know Kīlauea has been erupting slowly in the collapsed summit crater since September 2021 after a quiet period following the 2018 lower east rift zone flow that buried Puna and Kapaho (which I personally stepped foot onto in April). Now, add the super tall Mauna Loa to it. First the summit caldera filled up, after which lava breached the higher northeast rift zone. There is no imminent danger from lava to anyone on the island, but depending on how long it goes and where it flows, there can be some issues ahead.
I'll let the news show you what it captured image-wise. The last eruption of Mauna Loa was in 1984.
That ought to be interesting to see how it affects my 2023 travel plans depending on what roads get taken out.
If history is any indication, the current eruption could impact the recently-constructed eastern segments of Saddle Road (HI-200) and HI-2000. Much of this was still under construction when I was last there in 2016. The 1984 eruption got really close to where HI-200 splits away from HI-2000 near Kaūmana, and the 1935 eruption actually split the middle of The Saddle itself. Locals in Hilo still are thankful of how the 1881 eruption stopped just short of the city back then. If my geographic history is correct, the 1881 flow contributed to the current arrangement of the narrowing of the Wailuku River at Rainbow Falls (which is currently within the city limits).
Quote from: SSOWorld on November 28, 2022, 07:33:47 PM
I'll let the news show you what it captured image-wise. The last eruption of Mauna Loa was in 1984.
The Hawaii Volcano Observatory in Hilo (relocated from its original location at the edge of the Kilauea caldera) has web-posted lots of photo updates of whatever eruption is happening at the moment. HVO's current image gallery is at https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mauna-loa/multimedia Some historic HVO photos of damage to roads near the Kilauea caldera (not including the more recent eruption in the Puna/Kapoho area SSOWorld visited) are at http://hawaiihighways.com/photos-Lava-Closures.htm
The 1950 Mauna Loa eruption severed route 11 south of Kailua-Kona. That closure took a long time to fix, since it took awhile for the lava to cool down enough to blast through it with the explosives then available. Modern explosives have since reduced the time needed to reopen lava-closed highways. More recent Mauna Loa eruptions have approached, but not threatened, the cross-island route 200, or roads in Hilo's outskirts. Too soon to predict whether the latest eruption will threaten the weather observatory on Mauna Loa's north slope, its access road (http://hawaiihighways.com/photos-observatories-roads.htm), or anything in the Hilo area.
We must build a lava fence. :D
Quote from: Rothman on November 28, 2022, 09:55:28 PM
We must build a lava fence. :D
Fences will burn, though. Cobblestone walls? I was previously thinking simply dirt blocks or cobblestone blocks would work, but one-high would allow people to jump over it, and two-high wouldn't allow them to see that there's lava behind it.
Quote from: Rothman on November 28, 2022, 09:55:28 PM
We must build a lava fence. :D
But what about environmental impact?....
Quote from: Rothman on November 28, 2022, 09:55:28 PM
We must build a lava fence. :D
The lava will pay for it!
(https://i.imgur.com/rsWr2pl.png)
^^^^
How dare the lava cross anywhere other than where that sign is!
Quote from: 1995hoo on November 29, 2022, 11:48:13 AM
^^^^
How dare the lava cross anywhere other than where that sign is!
move the sign to where you want it to go
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFCrJleggrI
Glad I'm not the only one who got the joke.
Really looks like the Saddle Road is in the crosshairs. Lava is flowing along side an older lava flow that will keep it from turning west until it gets to the road, from what I can see.
That's going to be a major detour; going around the belt road takes forever by comparison.
Quote from: triplemultiplex on November 30, 2022, 01:27:22 PM
Really looks like the Saddle Road is in the crosshairs. Lava is flowing along side an older lava flow that will keep it from turning west until it gets to the road, from what I can see.
That's going to be a major detour; going around the belt road takes forever by comparison.
The article I was reading this morning indicated that the lava flow was 4 miles from Saddle Road, but heading for an area that flattens out and will spread out the lava. That article indicated that Saddle Road will probably not be impacted. A lot depends on how long and how much lava volume comes from this event.
The HVO's update from overnight states, "Forecasts indicate it may take two days for lava flows to reach the Daniel K. Inouye Highway (Saddle Road)."
(https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/media/images/MicrosoftTeams-image%20%2813%29_0.png)
Makes me wonder if they'll take any steps to try and block the lava from covering the highway. It's technically possible, but would involve a mad rush of equipment and personnel. And there's not much material to work with up on the saddle; mostly solid rock. In theory, they could dig up one of the cinder cones that dot the Saddle area and use that to construct some kind of barrier. Those are made of loosely consolidated material compared to the solid basalt flows that surround them.
But perhaps the calculus is such that it's not worth the effort because they're operating under an assumption the eruption will end in a few weeks.
Regardless, it is a cool time to visit The Big Island; one can see two active eruptions pretty much simultaneously and that is totally awesome.
Quote from: triplemultiplex on November 30, 2022, 01:27:22 PM
Really looks like the Saddle Road is in the crosshairs. Lava is flowing along side an older lava flow that will keep it from turning west until it gets to the road, from what I can see.
That's going to be a major detour; going around the belt road takes forever by comparison.
More and more people are lining the road to aww at the flow. Google maps shows slow traffic around the Mauna Kea Access Road.
At the rate things are going, it doesn't appear like the Saddle Road will be in danger through the end of this month. The more gradual slope between the active flow and the highway means the lava tends to pool up and spread out more than it advances. Additionally, lava is starting to spill out the sides of the main channel further upslope reducing volume at the advancing front.
The eruption has settled into a single vent with basically all the lava flowing north. All indicators suggest no substantial decrease in output in the near term, so if you were heading out the islands over the holidays, it'll probably still be going.
Hawaii County has turned a side road up on the saddle into a
place for lava viewing. (https://ago-item-storage.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/76b1e32cf51e469bbb44e2a8c59683e3/2022_Mauna_Loa_Eruption_Traffic_Safety_Hazard_Plan_Public.pdf?X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjECAaCXVzLWVhc3QtMSJHMEUCIQCc6AXf6Gx2tA1P1dYFUF82qvQv5Z%2BYbFAcS4enWG6BRwIgTdCIqMbiuWEjPTtB5kP1mvuqsH6h7VHrW2wY%2FDsASU4qzQQISRAAGgw2MDQ3NTgxMDI2NjUiDMpdOm3xQ4wJJlERbSqqBNlCclcuVhNZWro8xwPBDuyteqQP9C4WoYzmhA%2FbM%2BKWq%2FRjGiLqXbsONoBim1tOL0o8tvC5pDsQQ6actT%2BUsw45u38tI8iNM%2BQVr4J0dBxSYbFPLWLBHNu%2BFHczeaFy6W3yK9GS%2FWnzOir39bI2UXZEPz7k5nj1ZwOwonb%2B09COzV%2Fm5XqsqyaLa7yRvd0a2B3XbjK6kvR6OwVwqVKB42WBY%2BKsGZUEAddYXWuItQrwaZX9VpjxQeJkR70ODo1R0iYq02rPyzoh16iVsipYKwYs7vOF9Y1LGaF%2FWOj8AyV%2BIV6BD%2B%2BKqzJzUl6hzexpBb4fAaw28sSckylrWA9WCN9YEcKvGgeMtHGEi933CT4dYX8o7GeioTjbIPJ%2FeQPh7LrRB4xWohn3XpT6men6gxLWxTdsFpiORNzJh0EoTvsqRZtDqugZ2Hg8won8aYtmXt6kWbCqGWGuQ2UEaZwcVEckBsWbcreNhVrGFEi36Nrc0Pn6irK0XXD68hYWYNkVoPWicwWr22EuAXkZ4q0Tta2JZk0ihYwths4TYKjf7ggwZIFxluEptgZ3etcW06oXhvb7p6xXFWb1zFe%2BYmtNaEO3yOWKRtIK2PcQBFj6r9sgU1SnjsubrcuOiGlwF%2ByPCa1YLugV5rkrZOftvsLU7scTNOitxh3SndqMxblNBii2wC%2FkyAC9hmRNvvPPsxkUltXo4xaxuH3PrhvxYFGxmWRmM7j77V05faiJMPOVyJwGOqkBDZTvBtQshTOd0WojJ86oUfkGBK0C0q26wRXXxxOhHHvIsJJzjnNedGI4R9WjQNhW%2BdEtkvQYfQaDK9vj1oz%2B1M%2BJClfnGSvVfvXgHHqkoaPp2D%2Fy8P9ckHb1Hkb1MmKHwzZc3oQ4Tzyvm7u1qOAWoHwFgRfJxr9FioJymigI5vaSniUxoFVrBVt9%2Buz2nuwi%2F1ZCqiXDwvSB1PXj3V6YImxUA3wuWUNRqw%3D%3D&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Date=20221208T171125Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=300&X-Amz-Credential=ASIAYZTTEKKEVRRBOKPQ%2F20221208%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Signature=c4971a3cb396b2fd88b60f7e2970c48578b717b4f297222c00c64082fbe9c783)
Note the temporary speed limit reductions at the relevant junctions.
I have heard the eruption has caused surging demand for rental housing/hotels on the Big Island. Prices are way up.
Seems like the show's over. Lava stopped flowing over the weekend and it looks like for all intents and purposes, the eruption is over. The lava flow stopped 1.7 miles from the highway.
Obviously something could always restart, but odds are against that. I imagine things will start to return to normal up on the Saddle over the next few days.
That was fun while it lasted. Two different places on the same (relatively small) island with hot lava. Who knows how long before they'll have that going on again in Hawaii.
I have been in south Maui for a week. There was a little haze the first couple days; the locals and the newspaper said it was "vog" from Mauna Loa although it just looked like typical marine haze to me. It's never sparkling clear in Hawaii, always at least some cloudiness both cirrus and stratus. Anyway it has been less hazy the last few days as this event has wound down.