A Hawaii volcano that has been oozing lava and burping steam for days may be gearing up for a huge eruption, scientists have warned, prompting the closure of Volcanoes National Park today. It is the newest threat from the Kilauea volcano, which began erupting last Thursday on the US state's Big Island, the National Park Service said.
Scientists say lava levels in the crater are going down, meaning it might be clogging and building up for a mighty blast.Movement of the molten rock opened space for lava at the summit to drain underground, reducing the height of a lava lake at the summit, US Geological Survey geophysicist Ingrid Johanson told the Los Angeles Times.
But as the lava lake levels fall below the groundwater table, water can start interacting with the magma, heating it up and creating steam, said USGS scientist Donald Swanson.
And if rocks fall from the walls surrounding the magma in the volcano, the rocks can form a dam. And then, if the steam builds pressure, "it can eventually burst out in an explosion," Swanson said. PTI
