Hawaii Kilauea volcano still erupting lava as visitors warned to stay away
Kilauea volcano in Hawaii continues to spew lava from its summit today after a spectacular eruption took place on Wednesday.
Located in the Halema'uma'u crater, the eruption took place at around 4.45am local time, with all activity occuring in the Kilauea summit region within the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
There are multiple fountains active on Halema'uma'u's crater floor.
Though the height of the fountains has decreased since the initial eruption, they are still reaching as high as nine metres.
Initial earthquake activity diminished following the eruption onset, but this has been replaced by a continuous eruptive tremor, which is associated with lava movement.
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Kilauea is one of the world's most active volcanoes (Uncredited/AP/REX/Shutterstock)Given the eruption took place within a closed area of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, the main concern is the high levels of volcanic gas which can have far-reaching impacts down-wind.
At the minute, there are high levels of sulphur dioxide, with a rate of around 65,0000 tonnes per day being measured between 8am and 9am on the morning of June 7.
Residents living 20 miles downwind of Kilauea's summit in Pahala have reported a dusting of gritty fine ash and Pele's hair - a volcanic glass formation produced when cooled lava stretches into thin strands, usually from lava fountains.
Lava flows cover the crater floor (Uncredited/AP/REX/Shutterstock)Kilauea is one of the most active volcanoes in the world, and began erupting after a three-month break.
Footage of the scene were captured by the US Geological Survey's Hawaiin Volcano Observatory after a glow was seen on a webcam, indicating the eruption had started.
Lava flows inundated the crater floor, which covers an area of around 1.5 square km, or 370 acres, and added around 10 metres to the lava depth.
Visitors are expected to flock to the Hawaii Volcano National Park to see the spectacle (Janice Wei/AP/REX/Shutterstock)A spokesperson for Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Jessica Ferracane, said the park is anticipating a large volume of visitors wanting to queue to see the spectacular event.
Visitors are being warned that under southerly wind conditions, there is potential for a dusting of gritty ash composed of volcanic ash and rock fragments, which presents a minor hazard.
"Kilauea overlook was spectacular this morning," she said.
"There are several areas of pretty robust fountaining." Ms Ferracane continued.
Red alert issued as Hawaii's Kilauea volcano starts erupting and spewing lava
"It's just really, really pretty."
Lava continues to spew from the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii (AP)The current Volcano Alert Level sits at 'WARNING' with the current Aviation Colour Code at 'RED' due to the ash spewing out of the volcano.
However, there's not thought to be a risk to the public at the moment given the lack of activity out on the rift zones.
Kilauea last began erupting in January, continuing for 61 days until it ended in March.
In November last year, Hawaii had two volcanoes spewing lava side by side for two weeks as the world's largest volcano, Mauna Loa, erupted along with Kilauea.
Between 1983 and 2018, Hawaii's highly active volcano saw uninterrupted eruption. Last month, roads were blocked by lava flows making their way down the lower East Rift Zone - which has been active for around 2,000 years.
Hawaiin lore says the volcano is home to the goddess of fire and volcanoes, Pele.
She also goes by the name 'Ka wahine 'ai honua', or "the woman who devours the land."
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