Overview
- Episode 38 began at 8:45 a.m. HST on December 6 and sustained lava fountaining for about 12.1 hours before ending abruptly at 8:52 p.m.
- Three vents erupted simultaneously in an extremely rare triple-fountain phase, with jets reaching up to about 370 meters (1,200 feet).
- An inclined fountain from the south vent buried the V3 streaming camera on the south rim between 9:55 and 9:57 a.m., destroying the unit as it recorded its final images.
- The eruption produced a large plume tracked by the Washington VAAC, with ash and sulfur dioxide layers observed up to roughly 10.7 km (35,000 feet) above sea level.
- USGS estimates indicate about 12 million cubic meters of lava covered 50–60% of the Halemaʻumaʻu floor, with reports of Pele’s hair and larger reticulite fragments falling downwind inside the park.