Kilauea is one of several active volcanoes in Hawaii, and last year poured cubic tonnes of lava throughout Big Island’s southeastern tip. The volcano erupted from May to September, and covered a large portion of the island, uprooting thousands of people and destroying properties. In the wake of last year’s activity, the volcano’s closest neighbour Mauna Loa has started to stir.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has raised the alert level for the Mauna Loa volcano.
Clusters of small earthquakes were picked up in the vicinity from October 2018, and continued unrest has led authorities to push the alert up one level.
The new yellow alert states the volcano is showing signs of “elevated unrest”.
This doesn’t mean the volcano will erupt imminently or even soon, but the USGS has not ruled this out.
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In a statement, the USGS said: “As has happened before, it is possible that current low-level unrest will continue and vary in intensity for many months, or even years without an eruption.
“It is also possible that the current unrest is an early precursor to an eventual eruption.
“At this time, we cannot determine which of these possibilities is more likely.”
Mauna Loa volcano is just 36.9 miles away from Kilauea, and the two volcanoes share a deep link, even drawing magma from the same ‘hot spot’ on the Earth’s crust.
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Is Kilauea effected by Mauna Loa’s activity?
According to the USGS, the increased activity at Mauna Loa has not affected Kilauea.
The USGS says: “Monitoring data continue to show steady rates of seismicity, deformation, low rates of sulfur dioxide emissions, and minor geologic changes since the end of eruptive activity in September 2018.
“Over the past week, monitoring data have shown no significant changes in volcanic activity. Rates of seismicity across the volcano remain low.”
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Geologists say the special link between Mauna Loa and Kilauea could ensure one volcano is always quieter.
Researchers from Rice University in the US found activity from one volcano may act as a pressure release valve for the other.
They said: “We find that eruptive activity at one volcano may inhibit eruptions of the adjacent volcano if there is no concurrent increase in magma supply.”
They said this is mainly evident during eruptions, so whether the same interaction is ongoing right now remains unclear.