Lava Flows

• Total area covered: 125.5 km² (48.4 mi²)

• New land created, 11/86-12/12: 202 hectares (500 acres)

   (Note: The figure above does not include new land reclaimed by wave erosion or lava bench collapses. Due to these processes, the total area of new land can decrease, as in 2005-2007.)

• Volume erupted (dense rock equivalent): about 4 km³ (about 1 mi³)

• Thickness along coast: 10-35 m (33-115 ft)

• Coastal highway covered: 14.3 km (8.9 mi)

• Structures destroyed: 214 (first in March 1983; most recent in March 2012)

 

Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō Facts

• Maximum height of cone in 1987: 255 m (835 ft)

• Height of cone in 2012: 171 m (560 ft)

• Dimensions of crater in 2012: 450 m x 300 m (1,475 x 985 ft)

 

Ocean Entry Facts

• Percentage of time lava from this eruption has poured into the Pacific Ocean: about 70%

• Longest-lived ocean entries: East Lae‘apuki (22.5 months, May 2005–March 2007); Waikupanaha (22 months, March 2008–January 2010)

• Largest delta created: East Lae‘apuki (64 acres)

• Largest delta collapse: East Lae‘apuki (44 acres fell into the ocean in November 2005)

 

Sulfur Dioxide Emissions

• Total amount of SO₂ emitted from all East Rift Zone sources (based on COSPEC and FLYSPEC measurements): approximately 19 million metric tonnes