Volcano Awareness Month

January 2011 is Hawai'i Island's second annual "Volcano Awareness Month." Today, as in the past, awareness is essential for us to live in harmony with the volcanoes that are our island home. With this in mind, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO), in cooperation with Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, Hawai'i County Civil Defense, and the University of Hawai'i at Hilo, will promote the importance of understanding and respecting the volcanoes on which we live through a month-long series of activities. During the month, we will offer evening talks, guided hikes, a teacher workshop, and other programs as opportunities for you to increase your awareness of Hawai'i's volcanoes. Details about these activities are provided in the links below. This month also marks the 28th anniversary of Kīlauea's east rift zone eruption, which began on January 3, 1983, and continues today. During the past year, lava flows from this ongoing eruption burned two homes in Kalapana Gardens—the same area where lava destroyed 104 structures in 1990. The recent and past destruction in this coastal community are sobering reminders of why it's important to understand how Hawai'i's volcanoes work. In this composite photo of Kīlauea's southeast flank, a thermal image has been superimposed over a conventional photo to highlight lava flows that were advancing toward Kalapana Gardens (lower right) and two ocean entries on August 6, 2010. Inactive, but still warm, lava is pink to purple in color. Active breakouts of molten lava on the coastal plain and at the ocean entries are yellow to white in color.