If Jim Kauahikaua had his way, you would not be reading this Volcano Watch article. ADVERTISING If Jim Kauahikaua had his way, you would not be reading this Volcano Watch article. That’s because he deeply dislikes being the center of
If Jim Kauahikaua had his way, you would not be reading this Volcano Watch article.
That’s because he deeply dislikes being the center of attention. Nevertheless, we take this opportunity to acknowledge Jim before he steps aside as scientist-in-charge of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory on March 8.
Jim, known for his iconic beard and ponytail, joined HVO’s staff as a geophysicist in 1988. His research focused on magnetic, gravity and electrical resistivity studies of Hawaiian volcanoes and techniques for assessing lava flow hazards and quantifying lava flow emplacement.
On Oct. 3, 2004, Jim was named HVO’s 19th scientist-in-charge — the first of Hawaiian ancestry. When he steps aside, he will have served as lead scientist for more than 10 years — one of the longest terms in HVO’s history.
Since 2004, Jim has overseen substantial changes in HVO’s volcano and earthquake monitoring technologies and capabilities. A notable challenge successfully managed by Jim was HVO’s use of $3.1 million provided by the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Many improvements were accomplished through that one-time boost in funding, but most importantly HVO’s monitoring networks were expanded and made completely digital. Redundant telemetry paths also were added to ensure consistent and near-real-time connectivity between HVO and the more than 100 field-based monitoring instruments on Hawaii’s active volcanoes.
Scientist-in-charge responsibilities include more than scientific achievement, and Jim certainly faced his share of difficult issues — reduced or uncertain budgets, the 2013 Federal government shutdown and more. But his able leadership ensured HVO’s operations and research progressed without interruption, even under the most challenging circumstances.
During the past 10 years, Jim coordinated HVO’s response to a number of significant volcanic and seismic events on the Big Island. These include the 2004-05 Mauna Loa unrest, the 2006 destructive Kiholo Bay earthquake, and, on Kilauea, the 2008 explosive opening of the summit vent within Halema‘uma‘u Crater and the 2011 Kamoamoa fissure eruption, in addition to the ongoing East Rift Zone (Pu‘u ‘O‘o) eruption. Jim’s expertise on lava flow emplacement and hazards served HVO well when Kilauea lava re-entered Kalapana in 2010-11, as well as when lava flowed northeast from Pu‘u ‘O‘o toward Puna communities — first in 2007, then in 2013-14 (Kahauale‘a flows), and again with today’s still-active June 27 flow.
Responding to natural hazards often is a multi-agency effort, and Jim strengthened existing relationships and forged new ones between HVO and other federal, state and county agencies. As scientist-in-charge, he worked closely with Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, state Department of Land and Natural Resources, Hawaii County Civil Defense and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center to support interagency cooperation and collaboration.
A notable milestone of Jim’s tenure as scientist-in-charge was HVO’s centennial celebration in 2012. He guided plans for an HVO open house, attended by more than 1,400 Hawaii residents and visitors, and supported HVO staff involved in organizing an international gathering of volcanologists focused on the study of Hawaiian volcanoes and earthquakes. Jim also co-authored “The Story of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory — A Remarkable First 100 Years of Tracking Eruptions and Earthquakes” (http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/135/) to commemorate HVO’s history.
Jim champions HVO’s outreach and communication efforts, often leading the charge to increase public awareness of Hawaiian volcanoes and earthquakes. He participates in community outreach events, writes numerous Volcano Watch articles each year, presents countless public talks, and personally answers many of the askHVO emails.
It’s impossible within the limits of this article to extol all that Jim accomplished as HVO’s scientist-in-charge. But, despite his aversion to the spotlight, we want to honor and express appreciation for Jim’s leadership during the past decade.
Tom Murray, director of the USGS Volcano Science Center (and Jim’s boss), perhaps says it best: “HVO’s achievements under Jim’s leadership have been remarkable. Just responding daily to the eruption is a full-time task, but Jim has also accomplished many goals related to long-term improvements to HVO … and enhancing ties to the community. What’s best for the community, for HVO and for the staff were his priorities. He’s been great to work with.”
Jim remains on HVO’s staff. His beard and ponytail have grayed, but his passion for studying Hawaiian volcanoes and earthquakes remains vibrant. While he looks forward to passing the scientist-in-charge torch to his successor, he has no plans to slow down.
There’s research to conduct — and Jim is keen to get back to it.
Kilauea activity update
Kilauea’s East Rift Zone lava flow fed breakouts across the leading 2.5 km (1.6 mi) of the flow, but had not advanced farther downslope. Breakouts also were active about 6 km (4 mi) upslope from the flow front, over a broad area about 3 km (2 mi) northeast of Pu‘u ‘O‘o, and on the north flank of Pu‘u ‘O‘o. The Pu‘u ‘O‘o crater also gradually subsided during the past week.
The summit lava lake level tracked summit deformation, falling about 15 m (50 ft) during midweek deflation before slowly rising again with inflation. The lake level was about 46 m (150 ft) below the rim of the Overlook crater as of Thursday.
There were no earthquakes reported felt on the Big Island this past week.
Visit the HVO website (http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov) for past Volcano Awareness Month articles and current Kilauea, Mauna Loa and Hualalai activity updates, recent volcano photos, recent earthquakes, and more; call (808) 967-8862 for a Kilauea summary; email questions to askHVO@usgs.gov.
Volcano Watch (http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch/) is a weekly article and activity update written by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
