MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

“The bulging Pu`u `Ō `ō crater on the east rift zone of Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano is putting on a show, and there is no telling what could be next.

This USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory video shows a timelapse sequence taken from a thermal camera on the rim of Pu`u `Ō `ō crater.

The movie spans from May 26 to today and shows the rising level of the lava lake in the crater.

Things appear to be going slow in the first part of the movie, which shows the eruption during the month of June. You can see the level of the lava lake rises primarily due to overflows building the steep levee walls higher.

Scientists say sources within Pu`u `O`o crater are feeding that lava lake.

But its in the last portion of the movie where things get really interesting. From about July 1 to today, geologists say much of the rise of the lava lake has been due to uplift of the crater floor, carrying the lava lake upward. This uplift has been especially pronounced over the past few days, shown by the final few moments of the movie.” Read more.