Stunning video reveals the massive 'firehose of lava' flowing from Hawaii's Kilauea volcano into the sea

Molten lava from Kilauea volcano in Hawaii is dumping directly into the Pacific
Massive lava stream is roughly 1-2 meters wide, spewing as a 'single large spout'
This creates dangerous explosions as the hot lava interacts with the cool sea

Published: 14:08 EST, 31 January 2017 | Updated: 15:21 EST, 31 January 2017

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The Kilauea volcano is spewing molten lava into the Pacific Ocean, spurring explosions that launch debris to twice the height of the sea cliff.

Footage captured by the USGS’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reveals the remarkable volcanic ‘firehose’ in action as it produces dangerous blasts, creating 'hazardous conditions on land and at sea.'

Upon a careful examination of the ‘unstable sea cliff’ this past weekend, researchers discovered a hot crack just above the site where the lava is flowing out, with temperatures as high as 428 degrees Fahrenheit.

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KILAUEA VOLCANO

It’s thought that the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii formed anywhere from 300,000-600,000 years ago.

And, it has been active ever since, according to the US Geological Survey.

It erupts from three main areas, the summit and two rift zones, and most of these events are ‘relatively gentle.’

But, not always.

‘Every few decades to centuries, however, powerful explosions spread ejecta across the landscape,’ according to the USGS’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

‘Such explosions can be lethal, as the one in 1790 that killed scores of people in a war party near the summit of Kilauea.'

The massive lava stream is roughly 1-2 meters wide and has been continuously pouring molten lava directly into the water at the Kamokuna ocean entry, according to the US Geological Survey.

It’s recently begin to flow from the lava tube as a ‘single large spout,’ causing pulsating blasts of molten fragments.

‘At Kilauea’s ocean entry on Jan 28 and 29, the interaction of molten lava flowing into cool seawater caused pulsating littoral explosions that threw spatter (fragments of molten lava) high into the air,’ the USGS HVO explains.

‘Some of these incandescent clasts fell on top of the sea cliff behind the ocean entry, forming a small spatter cone. During one exceptionally large burst, spatter as thrown about twice the height of the sea cliff.

‘These ocean entry littoral explosions, both large and small create hazardous conditions on land and at sea.’

The massive lava stream is roughly 1-2 meters wide and has been continuously pouring molten lava directly into the water at the Kamokuna ocean entry, according to the US Geological Survey

With the discovery of a hot ground crack in the sea cliff overhead, the site is considered to be extremely unstable.

But, geologists set out for a closer investigation on foot January 28 wearing protective gear.

The team found that the eastern end of the crack is roughly 11.8 inches (30 cm) wide, and ‘deeply cut into recent lava atop the older sea cliff.’

They were unable to access the western end as a result of numerous safety concerns, including poor air quality and the unstable ground.

‘This crack could be a precursor to collapse of an unstable section fo the sea cliff, making the site extremely dangerous for anyone who ventures too closely to the ocean entry by land or by sea,’ the USGS explains.

Thermal imaging has revealed that the hot crack reaches 428 degrees Fahrenheit (220 degrees Celsius) in the eastern end.

The lava flow streaming below continued on at a somewhat steady rate across last week, occasionally appearing wider and with holes in the sheet.

‘Some of these incandescent clasts fell on top of the sea cliff behind the ocean entry, forming a small spatter cone,' the USGS wrote. 'During one exceptionally large burst, spatter as thrown about twice the height of the sea cliff.'