Kīlauea Maintains Low-Level Summit Activity Ahead of Possible Episode 55
USGS HVO reports ongoing precursory, low-level lava activity at Kīlauea's summit in Halemaʻumaʻu with 29 north-vent overflows since Sept 7, fed by a 5–10 m dome fountain and forming two main flows that reached about 0.5 miles southwest and less than 0.5 miles northeast of the vent. Tremor persists, and summit reinflation has been unsteady since the Aug. 25 lava fountaining (episode 54), peaking Sept. 7 and then stalling. SO2 emissions run 1,000–5,000 t/day; trade winds are weak and the plume drifts southwest. Forecasters previously noted a Sept. 8–10 window for the start of Episode 55 high lava fountaining.