Volcano acting up

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During pahoehoe producing eruptive events lava tubes are continually formed, abandoned, and new ones formed all across the flow field. If you look where roads or home sites have been cut through pahoehoe you will see small scale versions. When lava forms channels they eventually crust over which can then form tubes, but tubes also are formed when the lava pushes seeps out from beneath the edges of the channel. The important thing to remember is that any given tube can and will get blocked and be abandoned, and formerly abandoned tubes can reactivate.

According to the 3-dimensional plastic scale map I looked at (thank you Basically Books) the eastern moving flows are all on one side of the ridge which blocks them from going south, the southern flow is squeezing through between two old cones in one of the few places this eruption can head south. At any time the tube feeding that flow could get blocked and the lava flow could resume its north or eastward march. Or go somewhere else entirely. The seeps on the north side have increased in the last 48 hours and tonight there is incandescence pretty far to the left on the webcam. Some of the best webcam viewing seems to be about 4:30 am Hawaii time, I just put it on and watch the light show while I get ready for work.

carol