After nearly four decades of silence, Hawaii’s Mauna Loa, the world’s largest active volcano, erupted Sunday night, prompting authorities to declare an ashfall advisory across the state’s Big Island.
“The eruption continues at the summit of Mauna Loa. All vents remain restricted to the summit area. However, lava flows in the summit region are visible from Kona. There is currently no indication of any migration of the eruption into a rift zone,” the US. Geological Survey wrote on its website, adding the current volcano alert level is “warning.”.
USGS webcam showed the eruption is currently confined to the summit.
No mandatory evacuation orders have been given to residents around Mauna Loa, but Hawaii County opened shelters just in case the eruption worsened.
The last time Mauna Loa erupted was in 1984. USGS wrote:
“Based on past events, the early stages of a Mauna Loa eruption can be very dynamic and the location and advance of lava flows can change rapidly.
“If the eruption remains in Moku’?weoweo, lava flows will most likely be confined within the caldera walls.
“However, if the eruptive vents migrate outside its walls, lava flows may move rapidly downslope.”
Portions of the Big Island could expect upwards of a quarter-inch of ash in some areas.
Footage of the eruption is being posted on Twitter.
The eruption is large enough that weather satellites have detected it from space.
We’ve been closely following the developments of Mauna Loa. In late October, the intensifying earthquake swarms underneath the volcano caught our attention, indicating a possible eruption. And the quakes continued this month as we noted, “such unrest could be a precursor to an eruption not seen in decades.”
