This morning, December 23, at approximately 2 a.m. HST, elevated earthquake activity began at the volcano’s summit. By 2:30 a.m., the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory observed eruptive activity in Kīlauea summit webcam images, indicating that an eruption has commenced within Halemaʻumaʻu and the summit caldera in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory is elevating Kīlauea’s volcano alert level from ADVISORY to WARNING and its aviation color code from YELLOW to RED as this eruption and associated hazards are evaluated.