Deck 5b - Tectonics: Kilauea, Hawaii

Question 1

What year was the Kilauea, Hawaii eruption?

Answer 1

2018

Question 2

What hazards were caused by the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 2

Lava flow, ash, gases (sulphur dioxide)

Question 3

What type of plate boundary is Kilauea on and which tectonic plates are involved?

Answer 3

Hotspot (intraplate volcano) on the Pacific Plate

Question 4

What type of volcano is Kilauea?

Answer 4

Hot spot, shield

Question 5

What sort of magma does Kilauea produce and what sort of eruptions does this lead to? Why?

Answer 5

Mafic/basaltic from the mantle plume is erupted from a central vent plus smaller fissure eruptions on its flanks. Produces effusive eruptions due to low viscosity of the lava that allows gases to escape readily. In 2018 the earthquake was triggered by an earthquake.

Question 6

How frequently does Mount Nyiragongo erupt?

(FREQUENCY)

Answer 6

Continuous since 1983 usually via underground vents that takes lava into the sea. Numerous eruptions on land since monitoring began in 1912, averaging once every 3.9 years.

Question 7

What was the VEI of the Kilauea eruption?

(MAGNITUDE)

Answer 7

VEI = 2

Question 8

What was the duration of the Kilauea eruption?

(DURATION)

Answer 8

Started 3rd May and ended 4th September (4 months)

Question 9

What signs were there before the Kilauea eruption occurred?

(PREDICTABILITY)

Answer 9

Harmonic tremors and swarms of earthquakes prior to the eruption. The largest was 6.9 MMS. Gas was also released.

Question 10

How quickly did the Kilauea eruption occur?

(SPEED OF ONSET)

Answer 10

Lava flowed more slowly that previous smaller fissure eruptions. 27km/hour

Question 11

What area did the Kilauea eruption impact?

(AREAL EXTENT)

Answer 11

Covered 35 km2 of land

Question 12

What was the GNI of the USA before the Kilauea eruption?

(ECONOMIC vulnerability)

Answer 12

$63,390 per capita in 2018

Question 13

What was the level of technology available on Hawaii, USA during the Kilauea eruption?

(ECONOMIC vulnerability)

Answer 13

High level of technology. Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) was set up in 1912 where scientists have developed new volcano-monitoring instruments and networks to record and document activity at Hawaiian volcanoes. HVO detected a ‘glow’ at 9:30pm 2nd May and issued a ‘red’ alert an a hour later after a 4.4 MMS earthquake occurred beneath Kilauea. Eruption began at 7:45am 3rd May.

Question 14

How educated were the Hawaiian population about the risks of volcanic eruptions prior to the Kilauea eruption?

(SOCIO-ECONOMIC vulnerability)

Answer 14

Compulsory primary and secondary education. Residents of Puna were well informed of risks and evacuation plans.

Question 15

How strong is the governance of Hawaii?

(POLTICAL vulnerability)

Answer 15

USA has a strong, stable, democratic government that has funded continuous monitoring of Kilauea. Federal assistance could cover 75% of cost of impacts to individuals as reviewed on a case by case basis

Question 16

What were the economic impacts of the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 16

-Estimated at over $800million
-Geothermal Power Station was closed (provided 25% of island’s electricity)
-Several highways destroyed
-Closure of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
-Jaggar Museum suffered damaged and is closed

Question 17

What were the social/demographic impacts of the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 17

-0 dead
-700 homes destroyed
-2,000 people displaced/evacuated
-Electricity shortages
-Sulphur dioxide irritated skin and eyes
-Other minor injuries included burns and broken bones from the lava

Question 18

What are the environmental impacts of the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 18

-Rare ecosystems destroyed including woodlands and freshwater lakes
-Farmland destroyed

Question 19

How prepared was Hawaii for the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 19

-Warnings from early tremors were acted on
-Residents are educated about eruption plans due to frequent eruptions
-Continued monitoring of Kilauea during the eruption

Question 20

What was the response (short term) to the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 20

-Evacuation of people in Puna in the danger zone
-Evacuation centres were set up
-Masks were given out to prevent breathing in fumes and toxins

Question 21

What was the recovery (long term) to the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 21

-Federal public assistance money was spend on replacing and reinforcing infrastructure such as roads and water supplies
-Housing development created for those that had lose homes in the event

Question 22

What was the mitigation after the Kilauea eruption?

Answer 22

-Assessment of ventilation in homes and offices
-Continued monitoring of volcanic activity
-Weekly community meetings held so individuals can be briefed and educated about ongoing risks