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Eruption of Kilauea

By Scott Bachmeier •

GOES-18 SO2 RGB, Shortwave Infrared (3.9 µm) and Fire Power derived product images [click to play animated GIF | MP4]

GOES-18 (GOES-West) SO2 RGB, Shortwave Infrared (3.9 µm) and Fire Power derived product images (above) showed the SO2 plume and thermal signature of an eruption of Kilauea that began at 4:44 AM HST or 1444 UTC on 07 June 2023. As of 1451 UTC (only 7 minutes after the onset of the eruption), the 3.9 µm infrared brightness temperature reached 137.88ºC — which is the saturation temperature of the GOES-18 ABI and 7 detectors — and Fire Power values peaked around 2100 MW (cursor sample). The Fire Power derived product is a component of the GOES Fire Detection and Characterization Algorithm (FDCA).

The thermal signature was also evident in Nighttime Microphysics RGB imagery from the CSPP GeoSphere site — and after sunrise the hazy SO2-rich volcanic plume could be seen in True Color RGB images, drifting southwestward away from Kilauea and the Big Island of Hawai`i.

GOES-18 Nighttime Microphysics RGB and True Color RGB images [click to play MP4 animation]

GOES-18 Ash RGB images created using Geo2Grid (below) showed the SO2-rich volcanic cloud (shades of cyan) as it drifted southwest. According to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, a sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission rate of approximately 65,000 tonnes per day was measured between approximately 8 and 9 a.m. local time (1800-1900 UTC).

GOES-18 Ash RGB images [click to play animated GIF | MP4]

Categories: Geo2Grid, GOES-18, Red-Green-Blue (RGB) images, Volcanic activity