Mauna Loa eruption - latest: Satellite captures view of advancing lava from space as crowds flock to volcano

Officials were initially concerned that lava flowing down Mauna Loa would head toward the community of South Kona, but scientists later assured the public the eruption had migrated to a rift zone on the volcano’s northeast flank and wasn’t threatening communities.

The lava was flowing “not super fast” at less than 1 mph, Ken Hon, scientist-in-charge at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said Tuesday. It was moving downhill about 6 miles (10 kilometers) from Saddle Road, which connects the eastern and western sides of Hawaii’s Big Island.

The flow was likely to slow down about 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) from the road, when it hits flatter ground.

It was not clear when or if the lava will reach the road.

The smell of volcanic gases and sulfur was thick Tuesday along Saddle Road, where people watched the wide stream of lava creep closer. Clouds cleared to reveal a large plume of gas and ash rising from a vent on the mountain.

Mauna Loa is one of five volcanoes that together make up the Big Island of Hawaii, which is the southernmost island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It’s not the tallest (that title goes to Mauna Kea) but it’s the largest and makes up about half of the island’s land mass.

It sits immediately north of Kilauea volcano, which is currently erupting from its summit crater. Kilauea is well-known for a 2018 eruption that destroyed 700 homes and sent rivers of lava spreading across farms and into the ocean.

Mauna Loa last erupted 38 years ago. In written history, dating to 1843, it’s erupted 33 times.

The Big Island is mostly rural and is home to cattle ranches, coffee farms and beach resorts. It’s about 200 miles (320 kilometers) south of Hawaii’s most populous island, Oahu, where the state capital Honolulu and beach resort Waikiki are both located.

AP

Hawaii Governor David Ige has reiterated that it’s “completely safe” to come visit the state’s Big Island to catch a glimpse of Mauna Loa’s eruption, noting that since the “eruption site is high up the mountain, and it’s in a relatively isolated location.”

But Gov Ige has cautioned that the uptick in tourists on the island, particularly as main highways are at risk of being shutdown, could increase the risk for another kind of hazard: car accidents.

“We are concerned because visitors and residents are stopping along the highway, and sometimes drivers are not paying attention fully,” he said, adding that distracted drivers gawking at the volcano and drivers parking illegally on main thoroughfares could create a potentially lethal combination.

For instance, just hours after Big Island Mayor Mitch Roth banned parking alongside the highway, a car was hit as it was driving off the shoulder to the main road.

Parking along the road is currently prohibited between mile markers 16 to 31, and any vehicles left there could be towed or ticketed with a $1,000 fine.

“So we are concerned about traffic control on the highway,” added Gov Ige.

Although there is no immediate danger to communities on Hawaii’s Big Island, officials have warned residents to be ready for the worst.

Many current residents weren’t living there when Mauna Loa last erupted 38 years ago. The US Geological Survey warned the roughly 200,000 people on the Big Island that an eruption “can be very dynamic, and the location and advance of lava flows can change rapidly.”

The eruption began late Sunday night following a series of fairly large earthquakes, said Ken Hon, the scientist-in-charge at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

There’s been a surge of development on the Big Island in recent decades — its population has more than doubled, from 92,000 in 1980.

Most of the people on the island live in the city of Kailua-Kona to the west of the volcano, which has about 23,000 people, and Hilo to the east, with about 45,000. Officials were most worried about several subdivisions about 30 miles to the south of the volcano, which are home to about 5,000 people.

AP

Hawaii’s National Weather Service branch has issued an ashfall warning after an eruption began on Mauna Loa, the largest volcano on Earth, on the state’s Big Island.

The eruption, the volcano’s first in nearly four decades, has triggered dozens of earthquakes of more than 2.5 magnitudes on the Richter scale, one of them clocking in at 4.2.

According to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, the eruption began at approximately 11.30pm Hawaii time on Sunday night. The service warned that “winds may carry volcanic gas and possibly fine ash and Pele’s Hair downwind”.

We’ve got all the details you need to know.

As Mauna Loa continues to erupt, Hawai’i’s Department of Land and Natural Resources is sharing a number of dramatic views of the volcano in action.

Here are some of the most striking pictures and videos.

The US Geological Survey warned there was a “high probability” a stream of molten lava would reach a main highway on Hawaii’s Big Island within the week even as the momentum seemed to slow overnight.

Officials are preparing for the possibility that the Daniel K Inouye Highway, which connects the communities of Hilo and Kona, could be shut down within the week despite the flow slowing its advance.

“It’ll probably come around the north side of Pu’u Huluhulu, which is right at the Mauna Kea turnoff on Saddle Road,” said Ken Hon, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientist-in-charge, at a news conference.

The lava flow was previously moving at a rate of 130 meters an hour, but as of Thursday night, Mr Hon confirmed that it had slowed to just 30 yards per hour as the lava had hit a flat terrain.

The eruption of Mauna Loa is about more than just geology, according to some Native Hawaiians.

It represents the island pushing back against centuries of colonization and exploitation.

“The Native people have been saying this isn’t your place to extract and profit from anymore,” Kaniela Ing, former state legislator and co-founder of Native Hawaiian-focused organization Our Hawaii, told NBC News. “You don’t have authority to shape our sacred lands.”

Mr Ing, refering to the Hawaiian volcano deity, said the eruption was “Pelehonuamea saying, ‘They’re right. My people are right.’”

Hawaii’s Mauna Loa, the largest active volcano on the planet, has erupted for the first time in nearly four decades.

The eruption on the state’s Big Island began at around 11.30pm local time on Sunday in Mokuaweoweo, the summit caldera of the volcano, according to the National Weather Service.

Lava flows are contained to the summit area, around 2.5miles above sea level, with no threat to communities downslope but the situation is being closely monitored as it can change rapidly.

While the eruption of Mauna Loa is a rare occurrence, the climate crisis could lead to more volcanic activity, some scientists say.

The greenhouse gas emissions heating the planet are melting glaciers and in turn destabilizing mountains, creating conditions for volcanic eruptions that were previously restrained.

Louise Boyle has more.