Restless Kilauea

Fiery lava continues to pour from the Kilauea volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island. These Copernicus Sentinel-2 images from 23 May, 7 June and 12 June 2018 show the relentless flow of lava and clouds of ash. This is an update of the Hawaii lava flow animation published on 8 June. The eruption, which began in early May, has destroyed more than 600 homes, spread lava over more than 800 ha of land and opened up at least 22 fissures in the ground, according to Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim. Although this eruption has produced slow-moving lava, which has allowed people to evacuate, it is reported to be the most destructive eruption in the U.S. since that of Mount St. Helen’s in 1980.

While the Sentinel-2 mission mainly provides information for agricultural and forestry practices and to map changes in land cover, its images of disasters such as volcanic eruptions can be used to help assess damage.