The late eruption from Kilauea
Hitchcock CH. 1887. The late eruption from Kilauea. Science. 9(212):180-185
At the beginning of March 1886, the lava lake of Halemaumau occupied the top of a broad dome 160 ft above the level of the floor at the northern edge of the caldera. On March 6, the lava level suddenly dropped, leaving a floor of talus 570 ft below the rim. Hitchcock infers that the magma lost must have been intruded somewhere in the volcanic edifice. Lava returned to the pit early on June 4, and by the end of June the pit was entirely filled and a roughly conical mound was rising above its rim. It was still rising in October 1886. Maps by Emerson and Dodge show Halemaumau in April and October. Hitchcock remarks on Keanakakoi ash and correctly links it to the 1790 eruption. He briefly describes the 1868 Kilauea southwest rift eruption. He calculates that the levels of lava in Kilauea after the eruptions of 1823, 1840, and 1886 were within 40 ft of one another, and therefore concludes that there has been no net change for the preceding 65 years. [This goes counter to Dana's evaluation, which indicated that Kilauea had filled up several hundred feet.]
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Hitchcock, C
- Units
- HAVO
- Keywords
- 1790, 1886, Filling, Halemaumau Crater, Hawaii (Big Island), Keanakakoi Ash Member, Kilauea Caldera, Kilauea Volcano, Lava Lake, Puna Basalt, Subsidence, Summit Caldera