HVO Shifts Monitoring Efforts To Mauna Loa

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has noted increased rates of inflation at Mauna Loa after the 2018 eruption of Kilauea. Inflation rates are still below the rates observed from 2014-2017, however increased earthquakes and ground deformation have been detected after the Kilauea eruption ended, and show a consistent trend.

The shallow magma reservoirs of Mauna Loa have undergone several periods of inflation since its last eruption in 1984, but all have paused without an eruption.

It is unknown what, if any, connection Mauna Loa and Kilauea share in terms of interactions. Kilauea's magma chamber draining may have allowed more pressure to build at Mauna Loa, or caused changes in the magmatic system. Some scientists have noted that when one volcano stops erupting, the other will begin an inflation phase, occasionally leading to eruption.

HVO scientists are looking at the current state of the volcanoes to test this theory. If Mauna Loa enters into an eruptive phase while Kilauea is dormant, this would lend more credence to the theory that the two volcanoes have an effect on each other. However there have been periods, such as the 1984 eruption of Mauna Loa, where the two have emitted lava simultaneously, but simultaneous activity is somewhat rare, and short-lived.

Currently both volcanoes are at 'Normal' levels of background activity, and no eruption from Manua Loa is imminent or predicted to occur in weeks or months. With Hawaii volcanoes though, activity seems to quickly ramp up before an eruption, so vigilance is always warranted.

You can monitor the inflation of both volcanoes on HVO's website:

For Kilauea:
https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea/monitoring_deformation.html

For Mauna Loa:
https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mauna_loa/monitoring_deformation.html