The U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports that, starting just before 6 a.m. Sunday, a flurry of small earthquakes occurred on Kilauea Volcano’s upper East Rift Zone.
The U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reports that, starting just before 6 a.m. Sunday, a flurry of small earthquakes occurred on Kilauea Volcano’s upper East Rift Zone.
The earthquakes were concentrated about 3-4 miles southeast of Kilauea’s summit in an area between Hi‘iaka and Ko‘oko‘olau Craters on the Chain of Craters Road in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The sequence consisted of 31 earthquakes over a period of about 42 minutes. The eight largest events had magnitudes ranging from 1.7 to 3.9 and depths of about 1-2 miles beneath the surface.
At least six of the earthquakes were felt on Big Island, primarily in the Ka‘u and Puna districts. The USGS “Did you feel it?” website (http://earthquake.usgs.gov/dyfi/) received more than 30 reports within an hour of the largest earthquake, which occurred at 6:13 a.m.
Weak to light shaking, with maximum Intensity of IV, has been reported. At that intensity, damage to buildings or structures is not expected.
The size and location of this morning’s quake sequence suggest a source that might be related to the ongoing pressurized magma storage system beneath the Kilauea summit area.
According to Tina Neal, HVO scientist-in-charge, the earthquakes caused no significant changes in Kilauea’s ongoing eruptions. No changes in deformation or ground surface cracks were observed in the area.
For more information, visit the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory website at http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov.