After a 38-year pause, Mauna Loa erupted on Sunday night, November 27, 2022, at approximately 11:30 p.m. This new volcano activity is located at Mauna Loa’s summit at Moku’aweoweo Caldera at 13,681 feet or 4,170 meters above sea level.
Lava is clearly visible overnight in webcam views. This link will take you to the webcam. Note that lava activity is easier to observe in nighttime views verses daytime views as our following image illustrates from previous Kilauea eruptions.
Initially, the lava was contained fully within the summit crater. As of 6:30 a.m. on November 28, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory confirmed that lava has exited Mauna Loa summit and can be seen on the northeast flank. The northeast flank is not populated and does not pose a threat to any communities at this time.
Mauna Loa is the second tallest summit on Hawaii (Big) Island, so it has a prominent presence on the island’s landscape. If you are visiting Hawaii Island, look to the summit of Mauna Loa and you might observe eruption activity — perhaps in a plume in the daytime or possibly a red/orange glow at night. According the this USGS report, this Mauna Loa eruption is visible from Kona.
With this new Mauna Loa eruption, there are now two volcanoes on Hawaii (Big) Island that are actively erupting. Kilauea has been active for many months at Halema’uma’u Crater inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
At this point, there are no reasons to change travel plans due to this new Mauna Loa eruption. All airports, hotels, attractions and tours are operating as normal. If you have any questions regarding potential travel impacts, see this link to GoHawaii’s page for Mauna Loa alerts.
For further updates on the Mauna Loa eruption, see this link.
Sheila Beal
