Kilauea: The Home of Pele - The 2018 Eruption, Halemaʻumaʻu & the Living Earth
Discover Kilauea, the world's most active volcano and the sacred home of the goddess Pele. Explore the massive 2018 eruption, the lava lakes of Halemaʻumaʻu, and the science of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
Kilauea is not the tallest volcano on the island of Hawaii (that title belongs to Mauna Kea), nor is it the most massive (Mauna Loa). But it is undeniably the most energetic. Often cited as the most active volcano on Earth, Kilauea is a place of constant creation and destruction. For modern geologists, it is the world’s premier laboratory for studying “effusive” volcanism. For the Native Hawaiian people, it is something far more profound: it is the physical embodiment of Pele, the goddess of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes. To walk on Kilauea is to walk in her domain.
1. Pele: The Goddess in the Crater
In Hawaiian culture, the volcano is not an inanimate object; it is a living ancestor. Pele-honua-mea (“Pele of the sacred land”) is said to reside within the Halemaʻumaʻu crater at the summit of Kilauea.
The Legend of Migration
Legends tell of Pele’s journey from Tahiti, pursued by her angry sister Nāmakaokahaʻi (goddess of the sea). Pele traveled down the island chain, digging fire pits on Kauai, Oahu, and Maui, but each time the sea goddess flooded them. Finally, Pele found a secure home on the Big Island of Hawaii, where the fires of Kilauea burn hot enough to keep the ocean at bay.
Cultural Protocol
For practitioners of traditional Hawaiian religion, visiting the summit is a spiritual act. Hula hālau (schools) come to the rim of Halemaʻumaʻu to perform chants and dances honoring Pele. Offerings of leis and chants are common, but visitors are warned never to take lava rocks as souvenirs. The “Curse of Pele” is a modern legend claiming that anyone who removes rocks from the island will suffer bad luck until they are returned—a myth that results in thousands of pounds of mailed-back rocks arriving at the National Park every year.
2. The 2018 Lower Puna Eruption: A Historic Shift
For 35 years (1983–2018), Kilauea had been erupting almost continuously from the Puʻu ʻŌʻō vent on its East Rift Zone. It was a tourist-friendly eruption, sending slow-moving lava flows into the ocean. But in May 2018, everything changed.
The Collapse of the Crater
The floor of the Puʻu ʻŌʻō crater suddenly collapsed, signaling that magma was draining away underground. Days later, cracks opened up in the Leilani Estates subdivision, miles down the mountain. What followed was the largest eruption of Kilauea in at least 200 years.
Fissure 8 and the River of Fire
Over the next three months, 24 fissures ripped open the ground in the lower Puna district. Fissure 8 became the dominant vent, building a cinder cone over 100 feet high and feeding a massive, fast-moving river of lava that flowed all the way to Kapoho Bay. The eruption destroyed over 700 homes, wiped out the beautiful tide pools of Kapoho, and filled in the bay completely, creating 875 acres of new land.
The Summit Subsidence
While lava poured out of the lower flank, the summit of the volcano 25 miles away was collapsing inward. As the magma chamber drained to feed the eruption below, the ground at the summit sank. The Halemaʻumaʻu crater, which had held a famous lava lake for ten years, grew from 280 feet deep to over 1,600 feet deep. The National Park was forced to close for months as tens of thousands of earthquakes shook the summit area, reshaping the landscape forever.
3. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO)
Perched on the rim of the caldera (until 2018), the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory is one of the oldest and most important scientific institutions of its kind.
A History of Discovery
Founded in 1912 by Thomas Jaggar, the HVO pioneered the use of seismology to predict volcanic eruptions. Jaggar famously said, “The work of the observatory is to help the people.” This philosophy was tested to its limit during the 2018 eruption, when HVO scientists worked around the clock to track flow directions and gas emissions, providing life-saving data to Civil Defense.
Living on the Edge
The 2018 earthquakes so badly damaged the historic HVO building and the adjacent Jaggar Museum that they were deemed structurally unsafe and permanently closed. The observatory is now operating from a new base in Hilo, utilizing a vast network of remote sensors—GPS, tiltmeters, webcams, and gas spectrometers—to monitor the volcano’s “breathing” from afar.
4. Effusive vs. Explosive: Kilauea’s Dual Nature
Kilauea is the type example of a shield volcano, known for its broad, gentle slopes and fluid, basaltic lava flows.
Understanding “Pahoehoe” and “A’a”
Hawaii gave the world the terms for the two main types of basaltic lava flows:
- Pahoehoe: Smooth, ropy lava that flows like molasses. It forms a skin that insulates the hot lava inside, allowing it to travel great distances.
- A’a: Rough, jagged, clinker-like lava. It moves as a tumbling wall of hot rocks and is notoriously difficult to walk on. Both types have the same chemical composition; the difference lies in temperature and flow rate.
The Violent Past
While we think of Kilauea as a “drive-in” volcano with gentle flows, it has a violent side. In 1790, an explosive eruption at the summit killed a traveling party of Hawaiian warriors (part of King Keōua’s army) with a pyroclastic surge. Fossilized footprints of the victims can still be seen in the solidified ash of the Kaʻū Desert. Scientists now know that when the water table interacts with the magma column (usually when the lava lake drains low), steam explosions can be catastrophic.
The Legend of Ohiʻa and Lehua
The biology of the volcano is as sacred as its geology. The dominant tree on the lava fields is the ʻŌhiʻa lehua. According to legend, ʻŌhiʻa was a handsome warrior and Lehua was the beautiful woman he loved. Pele, jealous of their love, tried to seduce ʻŌhiʻa, but he rejected her. In a rage, Pele turned him into a twisted, gnarled tree. Lehua was devastated, and the other gods, pitying her but unable to reverse Pele’s magic, turned her into the brilliant red flower that blooms on the ʻŌhiʻa tree. It is said that if you pick a Lehua blossom, it will rain, as the lovers are separated and the sky cries tears.
The 1959 Kilauea Iki Eruption
While the 2018 eruption was destructive, the 1959 eruption of Kilauea Iki (Little Kilauea) was a spectacle of pure power. It produced the highest lava fountains ever recorded in Hawaii, reaching an incredible height of 1,900 feet (580 meters). This event filled the Kilauea Iki crater with a lava lake 400 feet deep. Today, visitors can hike across the solidified floor of this lake, where the ground is still warm to the touch and steam rises from cracks, a reminder of the molten core that remains beneath the crust.
5. Halemaʻumaʻu: The Heart of the Mountain
The Halemaʻumaʻu crater is the focal point of Kilauea. It is a pit crater nestled within the larger summit caldera.
The Lava Lake Cycle
For much of the 19th and early 20th centuries, and again from 2008 to 2018, Halemaʻumaʻu contained a churning lava lake. These lakes are rare on Earth (others include Erebus in Antarctica and Nyiragongo in Congo). They provide a direct window into the volcano’s plumbing. Since the 2018 collapse, the lake has returned intermittently, sometimes filling the deep pit with hundreds of meters of fresh lava, only to crust over and pause again.
6. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can I see flowing lava right now?
It depends entirely on the day. Kilauea’s activity is variable. Sometimes there is a visible lake at the summit; other times, the volcano is in a “pause.” The USGS and National Park Service websites are the only reliable sources for daily updates.
Is it safe to breathe the air?
Volcanic smog, or Vog, is a major concern. It consists of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and other gases reacting with sunlight and oxygen. Vog can aggravate asthma and other respiratory conditions. The park has a system of color-coded flags to warn visitors about current air quality.
How big is the volcano?
Kilauea rises 1,247 meters (4,091 feet) above sea level, but it extends another 5,000 meters to the ocean floor. It is essentially a mountain growing on the side of the massive Mauna Loa, but it has its own distinct magma source.
What is the “East Rift Zone”?
It is a zone of weakness in the volcano’s flank that extends from the summit to the eastern tip of the island. Magma often travels underground along this rift, erupting from fissures miles away from the main crater (as happened in 2018).
Technical Specifications
| Feature | Data |
|---|---|
| Elevation | 1,247 m (4,091 ft) |
| Type | Shield Volcano |
| Oldest Rocks | ~280,000 years |
| Main Hazard | Lava flows, Vog, Earthquakes |
| Monitoring Agency | USGS - Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) |
| Cultural Significance | Home of Pele |
Kilauea is a place where land is born every day. It is a stunning visual reminder of the planet’s heat, forcing us to respect the primitive forces that build the ground beneath our feet.