Volcano Report, The Kilauea Edition

What’s more hot than an erupting volcano?

While vacationing on the Big Island of Hawaii, I visited the active lava fields of Kilauea to witness the birth of new land as lava meets the Pacific Ocean. The incredible plume that rises into the air is created from the instantaneous vaporization of water into steam as the hot lava hits the ocean water. Learn more about Kilauea at the United States Geological Survey’s website. http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/kilauea/
I used a digital SLR camera and a small pocket-sized FlipVideo camera to capture the action.

Slide show images of the approach to the Kilauea lava flow. Watch a time lapse view of the violent interaction of lava and water. Look carefully and you can see rock exploding out of the ocean.

Watch a two minute video from the “safe” viewing area looking out to where the lava meets the ocean.

Kilauea Lava Meets the Ocean from Robert Simpson on Vimeo