Hwy 132 , Pohoiki, Water in Halemaumau
Work crews have made great progress restoring Highway 132 from Pohoiki Road to Four Corners (the Red Road) following Kilauea Volcano’s lower east rift zone eruption. The project is scheduled for completion by this October. Still more sand has been deposited at Pohoiki Bay, making the beach less of a crescent shape. But perhaps most interesting are the changes that continue to reshape Halemaumau Crater and Kilauea Caldera. The enormous funnel-shaped Halemaumau, over a mile in diameter, now has a steaming water pond at the bottom. Scientists are continuing to investigate the source of the water that has appeared there. Reports are that its temperature is around 150 degrees, it continues to slowly grow, and is the most curious shade of green… a very similar color to Green Lake inside Kapoho Crater, which was evaporated by Kilauea’s 2018 LERZ eruption. Time will tell if the lake will get larger still and whether it will some day interact with lava re-entering the enormous crater. Bruce Omori and I were reunited with Paradise Helicopters’ pilot Robert Mitchell. Paradise Helicopters and Rob… what a team!
Mahalo to Paradise Helicopters and Bruce Omori at Extreme Exposure