Vog and Snow

Snow and clouds cover Mauna Kea

Like most of the world, the weather on the Big Island of Hawaii has been strange this year.  Two weeks ago the island was blanketed in vog from our constantly erupting volcano.  When the winds finally changed, it brought a thick blanket of clouds, rain and very cold temperatures

The heavy vog (volcanic smog) hung over us for over a week as a southern wind blew it north covering the west side of the island. When the vog gets thick, some people have a reaction in their lungs. The lung disease caused by inhaling very fine ash and sand from volcanoes, Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis, is actually the longest word in the dictionary.  In our case, the vog lowers our energy and we feel like we are down with the flu.  Our only recourse is to stay inside and run the AC to get some of the sulfur dioxide out of our air. 

When the winds changed we got rain with record cold temperatures for March.  Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa are covered in snow with high winds and freezing fog. The huge Thirty Meter Telescope, under construction on Mauna Kea, was delayed from the blizzard.

While we bundle up in temperatures in the low 60’s (F), the ocean surrounding the Hawaiian Islands is not cooling down.  The water is warmer than normal by up to 3.6 degrees. Last week NOAA Climate Prediction Center predicted a 60% chance of El Nino conditions because of the unusual warm temperatures in the equatorial Pacific.  The effects of the El Nino last year produced 20 named storms in the Eastern Pacific, the most since 1992.

An El Nino means our cold weather will likely be followed by a dry summer and another active hurricane season.  

Balmy arctic winter in Hawaii

Snow covered Mauna Kea

It has been a chilly winter on Hawaii Island this year.  It may be hard to believe that 61 degrees F is incredibly cold to us, but compared to our normal morning lows of 74 degrees, waking up in a room 13 degrees colder is quite a surprise.  On Oahu, temperatures in the 50’s were the coldest recorded in 122 years and far below the comfort level for those of us used to endless warm days.  Kauai and Maui have also broken temperature records in the 50’s this winter.

We have been bundling up in jackets for our chilly morning walks.  Visitors wearing shorts and tank tops give us funny looks as they walk by.  Mornings are the only time of day they are not overheated.   

 

View from Mauna Kea of the ocean below

Last year we had our warmest winter in Hawaii; most days the temperatures did not get below 81 degrees at night and it was over 100 degrees on our porch during the day in January.  This year is completely different with temperatures barely climbing to the mid-80’s during the heat of the day.

The cooler weather hasn’t dampened our enthusiasm for sitting on the beach to enjoy the ocean spray.  The whales have already arrived in Hawaii for the winter and we have seen them breaching.  It is unique to sit on the beach under palm trees and look up at snow covered Mauna Kea Volcano towering over us.   Where else in the world can you do that? 

Best Hawaii Island Guides on the Kindle

       

Two new Kindle books,Your Ideal Hawaii Island Vacation West Side: A Guide for Visiting Kona and Kohala on the Big Island of Hawaii and Your Ideal Hawaii Island Vacation East Side: A Guide for Visiting Hilo, Volcano, Kau, and Puna on the Big Island of Hawaii have been published on Amazon.

We think these new Hawaii Island guides are the best ever, although we might be a little biased since we wrote them.  The content is from the travel guide: Your Ideal Hawaii Island Vacation: A Guide for Visiting the Big Island of Hawaii; which was divided into two volumes to focus on each side of the island.

The Kindle versions of the travel guide have been enhanced from the paperback.  Since there is no cost for printing pages there are many more photographs of each location and since there is no cost for ink the photographs are all in color.

The Kindles have the benefit of being downloaded when you need them, like when your cruise ship arrives or during a drive around the island.  The Kindle travel guides describe the sites near the cruise ship ports and many side trips on island drives.  Links to websites for more information are included in the guide, another benefit of the Kindle format.  A Resource section with shopping, activities, and events is also in each Kindle book. 

Your Ideal Hawaii Island Vacation East Side Kindle covers Hilo, Puna, Volcano, Kau, the Hamakua Coast and Mauna Kea summit.  Maps, driving directions, photographs, and descriptions allow you to plan a trip in advance and use it as a resource during a trip.   Hilo is described in a driving guide and downtown walking tour that takes you to unique businesses, colorful parks, tropical gardens, waterfalls, museums, and historic sites.  Volcanoes National Park and nearby sites are described in detail to allow you to decide how much of the park you have time to see.   A driving guide through the remote coastline of Puna and unique sites in the largest and least populated district of Kau are included.  Sites along the Hamakua Coast are described as well as directions to the international telescopes on Mauna Kea.  If you are considering a visit to East Hawaii Island for a day or longer, this Kindle will guide you to all the amazing places to see.

Your Ideal Hawaii Island Vacation West Side Kindle covers North and South Kona, North and South Kohala and Waimea.  It has driving tours of Kailua-Kona, Kona Coffee Plantations, and the historic bays in South Kona.  It covers the many sites along the Akoni Pule Highway in North Kohala and Waimea town.  Maps, driving directions, photographs, and descriptions help you find hidden beaches and historic sites in Kona and Kohala.  Beaches and delightful spots hidden along the South Kohala coastline, dotted with luxury resorts, and North Kona are included.  A detailed walking tour of Kailua-Kona showcases the history and beauty of the town.  

We hope these new Kindle travel guides help visitors and residents investigate all the amazing places on the Island. Check them out on Amazon’s  “Look Inside” or borrow them for free through Amazon’s lending library. 

Hawaii Pu’u O’o Lava Flow goes a new direction

Pu'u O'o lava over Chain of Craters Road

We recently toured Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and drove to the end of the Chain of Craters Road where it was covered in lava from Pu’u O’o in 2003.  Pu’u O’o is located on an eastern ridge of Kilauea Volcano that parallels the southern coast of Puna.  Pu’u O’o has been erupting for the past 30 years, since January 1983, sending lava down the southern side of the ridge to the ocean. The lava has destroyed houses, roads, ancient Hawaiian sites, and beaches from Volcanoes National Park to Kalapana.  

USGS map of Pu'u O'o

Now the lava from Pu’u O’o is flowing a different direction.  Instead of the usual southern direction down the ridge to the coast, lava is flowing down the other side of the ridge in a northeastern direction.  In the last few months the lava has flowed 5 miles through a forest heading towards Puna’s eastern coastline. This new flow has been named Kahauale’a 2.

Tim Orr at the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory recently gave a presentation about the Kahauale’a Lava Flow in an “After Dark in the Park” on January 7.   He presented a map with what he called “fuzzy” predictions of where the lava might flow if the eruption continues.  

These predictions were made using topographic maps and plotting the areas the lava would likely flow.   At the current rate of flow, which stops and starts, he predicts it will not reach a populated area for a year.

When we visit areas around Hawaii Island covered by lava flows, we get philosophical about how fleeting buildings, beaches, and forests can be.

We hope this flow will not follow the predicted path of destruction.

Mauna Loa, the largest active volcano on Earth

We just had a week of intense volcanic emissions, called Vog, that covered the south Kohala Coast. This is the longest stretch of Vog we have had during 18 months of living here.  Actually, the rare occurrence of Vog is one the things we love about the Kohala Coast.  This Vog had a slightly rotten egg smell (caused by Hydrogen sulfide) combined with a “burnt rock” smell, like a ceramic kiln gives off at very high temperatures.  We had smelled rotten eggs a couple of times during our years in Hilo when the nearby Pu’u O'o vent was highly active and the wind was blowing toward Hilo.  But here in South Kohala, we are a long way from the active vents of Kilauea and a rotten egg smell at this distance is surprising.

Mauna Loa, the largest active volcano on Earth, is much closer to us.  The volcano covers half of Hawaii Island and has erupted 33 times since its first documented eruption in 1843. Its most recent eruption was from March 24 to April 15, 1984.  The heavy emissions covering the area appeared to be coming from Mauna Loa, but we assumed that it was just an illusion since Kilauea is behind Mauna Loa, but it got us looking more carefully at the web sites monitoring Mauna Loa.

We noticed tilt data from an instrument on the edge of Mauna Loa’s crater showing an increase over the past month. In early September, 350 earthquakes were detected in a 3-day period just west of Mauna Loa’s summit.  The earthquake swarm was in the same area where earthquakes occurred before Mauna Loa's 1975 and 1984 eruptions.  Steam is visible from a live camera located on the northeast rift zone of Mauna Loa’s Mokuʻāweoweo Caldera and the thermal camera shows the heat in the caldera.

The activity on Mauna Loa is not surprising and a future eruption is expected; the question is which direction lava will flow down the slopes. When Mauna Loa erupted in 1950, lava ran down its southwest side destroying  homes near Kailua-Kona.  When it last erupted in 1984, lava flooded the northeastern side of the mountain and stopped just outside Hilo.  In 2008, a magma bump on the southwestern side of Mauna Loa had risen eight inches in just three years.  At the time researchers speculated that the magma may cause a rip in the southwestern rift causing lava to flow toward the K'au District on the southeastern side of the island. Any direction of flow would endanger one or more communities on Hawaii Island.

Living on Hawaii Island, Mauna Loa is a beautiful sight worth keeping a close eye on.

Where to Stay on a Hawaii Island Vacation

Hilton Waikoloa Village Resort

Since moving to South Kohala last summer, we have had the benefit of talking with many visitors to the island staying in the nearby resorts.  We enjoy listening to their stories of touring the island, seeing the erupting volcano, and watching the whales.  Surprisingly, many of the visitors who stay at the luxury resorts are disappointed with the lack of exciting adventures nearby.  Visitors in search of an  “Adventure Vacation” are bored at the remote, fancy resorts, whereas visitors in search of a “Resort Vacation” are thrilled.  

Hawaii Island offers a luxury “Resort Vacation” on pristine, white sand beaches where you are pampered with staff who bring towels and drinks at cabanas on the beach and everything you need is right there. Years ago, when we had stressful jobs on the mainland, we often went to Hawaii just to rest, lay around the pool, be fed, and do nothing. The five-star resorts in South Kohala are perfect for this type of vacation.  Though they are remote, there are cruises that leave from Kohala boat landings and nearby helicopter tours that offer a way to view the active volcano without requiring the long drive.

South Kohala Luxury Resort

Visitors in search of an “Adventure Vacation” find Hawaii Island one of the best places for excitement and discovery.  There are zip lines over waterfalls, rafting trips through earth tunnels, swimming with huge manta rays at night, ATV tours through tropical jungles, evening boat trips to view lava spewing into the ocean, jet skiing, scuba diving into lava caves, horseback riding tours, and deep sea fishing.   You can go parasailing, rent a Harley motorcycle to tour the island, rent a bicycle to ride the Ironman route from Kona to Hawi, or tour lava fields at night.  However, the resorts in South Kohala are far from Volcanoes National Park, tropical forests in East Hawaii, and marine activities in Kona.  When planning an Adventure Vacation, staying near the action makes more sense and saves many hours in the car driving from place to place.

Thurston Lava Tube hike Volcanoes National Park

On one of our favorite vacations to Hawaii Island we toured the island in search of adventure; we stayed at the Kona Islander Inn within walking distance to the pier, a B&B in Ka’u District close to spelunking in a lava cave at Kula Kai, our favorite B&B in Volcano – Kilauea Lodge - near hiking trails in Volcanoes National Park, at the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel on Banyon Drive near tropical gardens, and at the Hilton in Waikoloa Beach to relax before leaving the island.   The cost of these modest hotels and B&B’s were far less than staying at a resort hotel the entire time and it allowed us to pay for more activities.

Devastation Trail Volcanoes National Park

Whatever type of vacation you are planning, recognizing the long driving distances on Hawaii Island, reserving activities in advance,  and selecting the right place to stay, makes all the difference in having the most fun on your vacation.

B&B Cottage Volcano Town

          

Hawaii’s spectacular sunsets from volcanic emissions

We are having gorgeous sunsets on Hawaii Island thanks to the increased volcanic activity from Kilauea Volcano. Volcanic ash makes the sunsets a bright reddish orange.

Unfortunately, the beautiful sunsets mean more volcanic emissions are covering the island.  Recently, two new vents opened up on the volcano and the amount of sulfur dioxide emissions have increased. The USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has measured sulfur dioxide emission rates of up to 900 tonnes or 1,984,140 pounds per day during September.

The Vog Measurement and Prediction Project (VMAP) at the University of Hawaii has created a very helpful map website that predicts the movement of sulfur dioxide (SO2) around the island.  This month there have been many days with deep orange and red level readings in Volcano and the southern parts of the island. Kona has also been having some days with high levels of Vog.

Hawaii Department of Health has an SO2 advisory website with advisory levels based on the measured amounts at various detectors around the island. We took a snapshot on  September 17^th, showing several hours of unhealthy red levels at Jaggar Museum in Volcanoes National Park.

 We find even yellow levels of SO2 to be uncomfortable.   After many hours of moderate levels, we feel fatigued and light headed. The best protection from unhealthy levels of SO2 is to stay inside and turn on the AC, if you have one.  We have gas masks just in case. We are hoping that the Volcanic emissions subside, but we are enjoying the incredible sunsets while they continue.  

Hawaii’s changing weather and the Pacific Oscillation

The ocean temperature is warming in the central Pacific Ocean and as a result the weather in Hawaii is changing.  

Climatologists have tied droughts and storms in Africa, the Americas, and Australia to changes in ocean surface temperatures in the central Pacific Ocean. The weather cycle is called “La Niña” when the surface water is warmer and “El Niño” when the water is colder. These alternating weather patterns are known as the Pacific Oscillation and though they take months or even years to develop, NOAA is always trying to predict when the changes will happen to prepare people for droughts and floods.

Living in Hawaii, these cycles are not as abstract to us as they used to be on the mainland.  When we jump into the ocean here, we can give a global weather report by the water surface temperatures we experience (we also have a thermometer watch to make it less subjective).

The La Niña cool water weather pattern which has affected Hawaii’s weather since about March 2010 is transitioning to a warm water El Niño.  El Niño weather brings more rain, storms and bigger waves for surfing in Hawaii.  We can already feel the effects of the increased cloudiness, humidity and dark clouds arriving from the warming surface waters.  Combined with heavy volcanic emissions from the volcano, the Kona coast has become hazier with fewer sunny days.

The slow warming of the Pacific Ocean, associated with an El Niño, has already deluged Oahu and Kauai with water from huge rain storms this past winter; Oahu was pummeled with water spouts, thunderstorms with hail, and a tornado. The El Niño may mean the arrival of more cyclones this summer during the most active months of the Central Pacific Hurricane season from July to October. 

Living on an active volcano island

Vog (volcanic smog), created by the gasses and ashes spewing from Kilauea Volcano tends to collect on the southwest side of Hawaii Island. Most days we get up early and get a dose of sunshine before the Vog starts to float inland and rise up the mountainside in Kona. This week the Vog has been so thick that it feels like the sun did not rise. The sounds of traffic and air conditioners are muted by the heavy air and the ocean and the sky merge into a single shade of gray. Hualalai Volcano, which rises behind Kailua-Kona town, is hidden behind a thick cover.   We study the Volcano through a variety of web links and wonder if there is more ash in the air these days or if the change in season has modified the direction of the wind.

We watch the grayish-blue cloud roiling out of Halema’uma’u Vent from a CAM set up by the USGS. We know that if the plume is heading to right on the screen it means Vog is coming our way. If the plume is bent away from the screen, we may have sunshine and clear skies in Kona the next day or two. At night we watch the eerie red emitting from the growing lava lake within Halema’uma’u on the camera.

We study the “tilt” events carefully recorded on graphs by the scientists at the HVO and know now that “deflation events” mean the lava is subsiding and “inflation events” mean the lava is surging, often spewing from Pu’u O’o vent down toward the ocean.  We study the USGS seismic map dotted with earthquake events  where the island is shifting and shuddering.

In Spring of 2008, the latest episode of this active volcano began.  Before 2008, there were 5 to 10 “tilt” events a year. There were 64 in 2009 and more every year since.  In the first three months of 2012, there have already been 37 “tilt events” measured from surging lava, more than ever recorded.   The island has had over 40 earthquakes in the past two weeks, the biggest a 4.9. The gas plume emissions from the Volcano contain sulfur dioxide, measured at 400 tonnes a day last week, and ash.

Though the dangers of tainted air, shaking earth, collapsing lava shelves,  and lava flows are very real, we feel alive and very well on our “living island”.

Volcanic Eruptions and Revolutions

Hawaii's Kilauea Volcano’s activity  increased last week with eruptions spewing lava up to 100 feet from a new fissure on the side of the volcano. The heightened activity in Hawaii was joined by other eruptions this year from volcanoes on the Island of Kyushu in Japan, Eastern Kamchatka in Russia, the Mariana Islands, Ecuador, Montserrat, Sulawesi, Guatemala, and Luzon. The massive earthquake in Japan last week was accompanied by an eruption of Mount Karangetang in Indonesia just hours later and renewed action from Shinmoedake Volcano in Japan. History has numerous examples of volcanic eruptions triggering revolutions.

The French revolution has been attributed to the Laki Volcano eruption in 1783. That year, the Laki Volcano spewed ash and gasses across Europe and North America creating what became known as the “sand summer” due to all the falling volcanic ash. The year of the eruption was followed by the coldest winter on record in North America with record snow on the East Coast and a frozen Mississippi River at New Orleans with the Gulf of Mexico reported to have had ice floating in it. The eruption was followed by years of wild storms, loss of livestock, and poor crop yields causing widespread famine.

A similar “Year without a Summer” occurred in 1816 when the average global temperatures decreased enough to cause food shortages worldwide. Food riots and famine spread across Europe and huge storms and flooding were widespread. The cold weather was caused by a large number of volcanic eruptions culminated by a colossal eruption of Mount Tambora on the island of Sumbawa in Indonesia, which is considered the largest eruption in over 1,630 years. The falling ash resulted in red and brown snow in far away Italy and Hungary.

It should be no surprise then that less than a year after the massive eruptions of Iceland’s Eyjafalljokull Volcano in April 2010, revolution is spreading across North Africa and the Middle East. Tunisia’s revolution began in December 2010 and led to the ousting of their President in January 2011. The demonstrations were attributed to the people’s frustration with high unemployment, high food prices, and lack of freedom. Tunisia’s success spread revolution to Egypt, which met with the same success by ousting their leader. Demonstrations and riots have spread throughout the Arab peninsula and China. But the riots started even earlier in 2010 when European workers rioted over their austerity programs and Asian countries like Thailand had severe political unrest.


The year before the onset of revolutions in North Africa and the Middle East, Iceland’s Eyjafalljokull Volcano eruptions were joined by 25 other erupting volcanoes in Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Russia, Japan, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, US Mariana Islands, DR Congo, Italy and the US Aleutian Islands. This was a substantially larger number of volcanic eruptions than the preceding years with less than 10 reported annually.

During the summer of 2010, the snow in Siberia never melted which is being blamed for the summer’s heat and this winter’s unusually cold temperatures. Climatologists claim that the snow layer that remained in Siberia last summer kept the arctic air mass from moving south and cooling North America in the summer as it normally does. They also predicted a cold winter this year. Snowbirds we know say the snow on the golf course in Canada is melting off slower than normal this year.

Living on Hawaii Island, volcanoes are always on our mind, along with earthquakes and tsunamis. Kilauea Volcano has been erupting for decades spewing thousands of tonnes of sulfuric acid into the skies above the Hawaiian islands and extending all the way across the Pacific Ocean to Guam. We feel the effects of the increased Volcanic smog (VOG) by seeing a reduction in our solar panel output by about 50%. On heavy VOG days, the temperature of the swimming pool drops by about 4 degrees and we notice on heavy VOG days we can skip the sunscreen and not get burned. History tells us that increased volcanic haze from volcanic eruptions will result in food shortages, high food prices and in many places revolutions.

Living with an active Volcano in Hawaii

Kilauea Volcano has been getting a lot of attention in the last couple of days. News sources are reporting lava eruptions of 65 to 100 feet following the Pu’u ‘O’o crater collapse on Saturday which ripped open a mile long fissure. But the latest eruption is not new, it is a continuation of our island's construction grand construction project.

For those of us living on Hawaii island, the volcanoes are constantly reminding us of their presence. They shakes the ground with earthquakes and Kilauea puffs out thousands of tonnes of sulfur dioxide and poisonous gasses every day. In Kalapana, where the lava is pouring into the sea, residents watch the shifting lava flows and witness houses and roads being consumed by lava.


The most popular place to view the Volcano's activity is in Volcanoes National Park at Jaggar Museum which has a lookout over the Halemaʻumaʻu crater. You can watch it remotely from USGS live cameras overlooking the crater.


But the Pu’u O’o crater, where all the excitement is happening is not easy to see. The activity is in an inaccessible area of Volcanoes National park. The best views of the lava fountains are from a helicopter, assuming the area is safe to fly near. The USGS has set up live cameras of the crater, but the volcanic gases usually obscure the action:
USGS cameras positioned on the east rim of Puʻu ʻŌʻō's crater
USGS cameras positioned on the north rim of Puʻu ʻŌʻō's crater.


The lava flows out of the park from Pu’u O’o crater to the ocean. The County of Hawaii monitors the lava flow outside of the National Park and visitors show up every day at the end of Highway 130 in Puna to view the lava. There is a parking lot with vendors selling pictures, jewelry, water, snacks, coffee, flashlights, T shirts, etc. The best views are at night when the surreal red glow contrasts to the pitch blackness of the night and the stars are clear and bright above. But even with a guide, flashlights, and proper shoes the trek to the lava is incredibly dangerous. Deep lava tubes and crevices are hard to see at night, the lava is surface is not flat, and chunks of lava can give way suddenly underneath your feet. Most of the land is private property and you may run into unsavory characters out on the lava fields.


The Hawaii County Civil Defense staffs the Kalapana viewing site and the free parking lot is open from 5 to 10PM to guard and protect visitors. Sometimes County workers block off access to the lava to keep people from walking on unstable ground, so the viewing may be from a distance or obstructed completely depending upon where the flow is located. A County Lava Hotline (808) 961-8093 is updated every day to give information about the current lava flow. Other good sources of information are the Hawaiian Lava Daily Blog and the USGS Hawaii Volcano Observatory Daily updates.


We know people who have hiked out to the lava after 10PM to avoid the County barricades and get close to the lava for photography. They met with disaster after falling into a crevice and getting a compound fracture to their ankle. It isn’t worth jeopardizing life and limb to get a good view that day. Follow the path, wear good solid shoes, take a jacket, water, flashlight and stay safe. The lava is slippery if wet, so beware when it rains The hot rocks and crevices with rain water make the lava fields a breeding ground for mosquitoes, so take bug spray if they bother you. It is a long drive back to the west side of Hawaii island if you are coming from there, so save your energy to drive safely back.


Walking tours are available for $50 to $75 per person in groups of 20 or more and take 3-4 hours. They are led by land owners in the area and leave at about 6PM and return about 9:30PM. They can lead you closer to the lava and keep you safer. Another option is to take a boat tour which lets you to view the lava from the ocean perspective. The tours run about $150 per person and leave from the Kapoho area.

Living with Hawaii’s volcanic emissions (VOG)

While living in Hilo we had some intense days of volcanic emissions (VOG) , usually when the trade winds were not blowing.  But in Kona, we have varying levels of VOG almost every day. The VOG, which consists of sulfuric compounds (like sulfuric dioxide), ash and particles, has been shown to cause health effects in children, whose lungs are still growing, and individuals with conditions like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).  Many of the people with respiratory conditions have moved away from the heaviest VOG areas on the southern part of the island or to the mainland.

A study released in 2009 showed an increase in emergency room visits in Kona and Ka’u during days when increased SO2 and particulate matter were measured in the air. Studies of similar pollutants have shown that the types of aerosols being emitted by the volcano can degrade lung function and compromise the immune system. We were surprised to learn that mercury is also produced by Kilauea and has been detected as far away as Oahu.  Though some people have no reaction, heavy VOG days can bring on a range of physical symptoms for others including breathing problems, a prickly sensation, watery eyes, a feeling of pressure on the chest, bronchitis, headaches, low energy, and asthma attack.

On heavy VOG days in Hilo we saw our solar panel output cut by up to 50%.  In Kona, heavy VOG days can drop the temperature of the swimming pool up to 4 degrees and it seems to be keeping Kona much cooler overall.  VOG doesn't distribute itself evenly across Kona. We are fortunate that our location near the water tends to get less VOG build up than the higher altitudes above us.  On extremely heavy VOG days we know we should stay indoors and turn on the AC or use an air purifier.   We monitor the air quality and output of the volcano by looking at the island-wide SO2 monitor and the live web cam of the volcano.  

Kilauea shows no sign of letting up on its continuous eruption and elevated volcanic emissions.  We have come to accept the VOG as a part of living on the island of Hawaii and hope that more studies will focus on how to be healthy living near a volcano.

LEARNING TO LOVE HAWAII’S VOG

One of the phenomenon’s of the ancient world was the Oracle at Delphi. Delphi is located in central Greece along the slope of Mount Parnassus where three tectonic plates meet and numerous faults intersect venting fumes from deep within the earth. The Oracle, an older woman chosen from the local villages, sat over a crack in the earth where the gaseous emissions from the rock put her into a trance that allowed her to foretell the future and answer questions. Visitors from around the Mediterranean region and even Egypt came to consult with the Oracle about their future, families, aspirations, when to declare wars, when to plant crops, and how to deal with famine. From 1400 BC to 390 AD, pilgrims to Delphi could make an appointment with Oracle and after paying a fee, hike up a path, file one by one into the temple, and get earthly-emission-based advice.

Stories of the Oracle’s renowned visitors and powerful advice abound. Over a span of 1800 years the Oracle advised notables such as Aegeus, Cadmus, Herakles, Oedipus, Perseus, Xerxes, Lysander, Philip II of Macedon, Cicero, Nero, Hadrian, Diocletian. The Oracle also declared Socrates the wisest man in Greece, to which Socrates said that if so, this was because he alone was aware of his own ignorance.

When we visited Delphi many years ago and stood near the vent, we felt dizzy and light headed after a while. It is very similar to how we feel after being in heavy VOG (volcanic emissions) here on the Big Island. Exposure to VOG affects our state of mind and makes the modern world feel far, far away. On days when it is really thick, it completely obstructs our view of Hilo Bay by whitening it out leaving visible only wisps of grey colored clouds that encircle the trees and houses. The VOG mutes the sounds of passing cars and bird songs making it seem like our ears are plugged. It feels like we are living on the Isle of Mists visited by Odysseus. On the really heavy VOG days we wonder if it was like this in final days of Pompeii and we are about to be buried in 30 feet of hot ash.

The VOG reminds us that the earth is a living thing. When the sulfur burns our eyes and throats we find it easier to mediate, easier to contemplate life, and gain a sharpened appreciation of the small but wonderful things in life like seeing blue sky and taking another breath.

IS GLOBAL VOLCANIC ACTIVITY INCREASING?

Living under the constantly erupting Kilauea Volcano in Hilo, Hawaii, we are especially attentive of news about other volcanoes around the world. It seems to us that a lot of volcanoes have been erupting during the past couple of years. Some scientists claim there are not more active volcanoes than usual but just more reports due to the increased population combined with better communications. They claim that 50 to 70 volcanoes erupt each year and 20 are always erupting.

But looking at volcanic reports, there seems to us to be a large number of active volcanoes, many of them having huge eruptions pushing emissions far up into the atmosphere. Since the beginning of 2009 thirty-seven volcanoes around world have started or continued eruptions, including Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii. Many of these erupting volcanoes are having major ash emissions reaching high altitudes which cover the earth.

In Indonesia at least seven volcanoes are currently erupting; Krakatau’s eruption has pushed ash to10,000 feet and Ibu’s eruption created a white-grey plume which rose over 1300 feet above its summit. Volcanoes are erupting in Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Mariana Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, Barren Island, and Japan. In September, the Mayon Volcano in the Philippines exploded ash up to 2300 feet.



In Alaska, Redoubt’s eruption created an ash emission up to 50,000 feet in March and Cleveland Volcano created an ash cloud reaching an altitude of 20,000 feet in October. Sarychev Peak Volcano on the Kurile Islands pushed ash emissions to 34,000 feet and Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula is having a record six volcanoes simultaneously erupting.

In August, Mexico’s Popocatepetl Volcano emitted ash to an altitude of 27,000 feet. Chaitén Volcano in Chile has had major eruptions this year with ash emissions reaching 100,000 feet. There are eruptions taking place in Mexico, Chile, Columbia and the Galapagos Islands. In Europe Montserrat Soufriere Hills, Mount Etna, and Stromboli Volcanoes are erupting.

Volcanoes are mostly tracked by satellites, so eruptions are not always seen due to the satellite’s position, darkness or clouds. This list does not include the numerous strong earthquakes under or near volcanoes this year, nor the consistently emitting volcanoes like Yellowstone or Long Valley in Mammoth Mountain which discharges 50-150 tons of carbon dioxide gas at the Horseshoe Lake Tree Kill Area range daily

The rate at which sulfur dioxide (SO2) has been released from Kilauea Volcano here in Hawaii has typically been between 150 and 200 tonnes/day, but in late December 2007, the emission rate increased to nearly 300 tonnes/day and it continued to rise until March 2008 when it reached 1,800 to 2,000 tonnes/day. The rate has slowly let up since then but is still up to 500 to700 tonnes/day, almost 4 times what is was before 2007. These emissions have crated haze and vog across Hawaii which sometimes reaches all the way to Guam.

Two thousand years ago Plutarch claimed that the eruption of Mount Etna in 44 B.C. dimmed the Sun and suggested that the resulting cooling caused crops to shrivel and produced famine in Rome and Egypt. Gasses from volcanoes result in numerous impacts on the climate and the USGS is currently studying gas emissions at 70 active volcanoes in the US alone. Sulfur dioxide is known to cause global cooling and ash injected at high altitudes can blot out the sun.

We notice here in Hilo that on days when heavy volcanic emissions (VOG) are overhead, it reduces the electrical production from our solar panel by 50%. We wonder if these global volcanic emissions will mean a colder winter this year or perhaps for several years to come?

A VOG SEASON IN HILO?

We woke up this morning with burning eyes and runny noses to see Hilo Bay completely obscured by the Vog. At swimming, everyone was complaining about feeling lethargic and struggling with their laps. “Vog” is a term used in Hawai‘i to describe the hazy conditions caused by volcanic gases being emitted into the air and mixing with water vapor and very small particles, primarily sulfur compounds and sulfur dioxide. The main sources are from the Halema‘uma‘u and Pu‘u ‘O‘o vents on Kilauea volcano which are spewing white clouds with glowing red embers.

Kilauea volcano is extremely active right now. The toxic volcanic gas emissions increased significantly after the March 19, 2008 Halema’uma’u explosive event and have resulted in parts of

the island being declared a disaster area due to Big Island famers and flower growers losing their crops. Some towns have become almost uninhabitable for people with respiratory problems and the county has notified island residents that they should not wait for an evacuation order if they feel ill from the volcanic output.

Normally, the trade winds blow the Vog south and west towards Guam. Towns in the district of Ka’u have been dealing with the worst of the vog since the onset of the increased activity, but the trade winds blow some of the Vog around behind Mauna Loa which builds up over the western side of the Big Island on the Kona and Kohala coasts as well. When the trade winds are blowing, the wind off the ocean keeps Hilo and most of the eastern side of the island free of Vog.

The trade winds blow 92% of the time during the summer but start to diminish in the winter when trade wind activity is only 40% of the time in January.

Before this last eruption the last major Vog releases were in the early 1980s and they did not last more than 3 weeks. The current intense Vog emissions have been going on for 9 months.
As we head into a quarter with fewer days of trade winds, we are preparing for a season of intense Vog in Hilo. We have noticed on days that Hilo gets high Vog readings; Kona is usually getting some relief. We get our Vog readings from the EPA air quality site. We also monitor the discharge of volcanic gasses by looking at the USGS real time volcano cameras and the current seismic activity on the Big Island on the USGS recent earthquakes site.


We are preparing in advance for Hilo’s Vog season. We have our SO2 detector nearby and our stash of gas masks and our predetermined route out of town if the detector goes off. We have a HEPA air filter to help with headaches and lots of green tea to help our sore throats. We are making a list of things we want to do on the western side of the Big Island since we have been avoiding it since last February due to their Vog problems. Kona has awesome snorkeling and we have been eager to check out some hiking trails in Kohala.


We may be completely wrong on our prediction of Hilo’s Vog Season as we are not Volcanologists. The county has limited resources for dealing with the impact of the volcanic gasses and lava flowing into the ocean and rarely updates their Civil Defense web site. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has daily updates, photos and videos of the volcanic activity but does not address the activity or health impacts outside the National park.
So this is just our best guess in the spirit of being proactively prepared while living so close to an erupting volcano.

IS HAWAII VOG'S COOLING OF THE MID-PACIFIC IMPACTING GLOBAL WEATHER?

Living in Hilo, Hawaii we are daily aware of the stunning impact of our active volcano Kilauea. In March, a new vent opened that emits volcanic gases with 10 times more sulfur dioxide than the volcano previously emitted. Vog, consisting of volcanic gases mixed with moisture, now daily impacts the skies of the Big Island and often other Hawaiian islands.

Climatologists and Volcanologists do not consider Vog to be a factor in influencing weather or ocean temperature due to two critical misunderstandings. The first is that Vog supposedly only impacts weather if it reaches the upper atmosphere because it is not stable in the lower atmosphere and rapidly dissipates within hours or at most days. In fact, the Hawaiian Vog is quite stable in the lower atmosphere and lasts many days, even weeks. This is obvious to the people that live in the west side of the Big Island of Hawaii who must deal with Vog that persists for days. And when the winds blow it out of the western part of the Big Island it reaches Maui , Oahu and even Kauai. The degree to which Vog persists became obvious last week when the island of Guam, 3828 miles away from Hawaii, reported persistent Vog from Kilauea blocking their sunlight and ocean views. Guam is further from Hawaii than Washington DC is from London, England. It takes at least nine days for the Vog from the Big Island to reach Guam.

The second misunderstanding is that Vog in the lower atmosphere is not able to effectively block sunlight. On any Voggy day one can easily tell that Vog very effectively blocks sunlight; noon in Kona can look like twilight. Since the Vog started in March, solar energy distributors are reporting that solar panels are producing 50% less power in Kona.

These misunderstandings about Vog published by Climatologists and Volcanologists made us wonder whether Vog can impact ocean temperatures. The images below show a NOAA map of surface temperatures and NASA view of Sulfur Dioxide emissions from Kilauea. The temperatures are Celsius, where orange is warmest and blue the coolest temperatures. The Sulfur Dioxide intensity or mass is greatest when orange in the NASA diagram. A huge mass of SO2 is east of the Big Island of Hawaii and the surface temperatures are cooler in the same location. It looks like the Vog is cooling the surface temperatures.
Vog’s surface temperature cooling interests us because of findings in ice cores published recently by National Geographic. Ice cores show higher levels of acidic sulfate molecules in them in the years 535 to 536. Ancient texts from that time period in Mesoamerica, Europe, and Asia document a cold darkness that withered crops resulting in widespread famine. The sulfate molecules point to volcanic activity, but no major eruption has been identified for that time period.

We wonder if it is possible for massive volcanic gas emissions to occur without being associated with a major eruption, as is occurring today in Hawaii as well as from other recent active volcanoes like
· Llaima and Chaiten in Chile,
· Karymsky and Shiveluch in Russia,
· Ubinas in Peru,
· Arenal in Costa Rica,
· Tungurahua in Ecuador,
· Santa Maria and Fuego and Pacaya in Guatemala,
· Popocatepeti in Mexico,
· Cleveland on Chuginadak Island,
· Anatahan in the Mariana Islands,
· Batu Tara on Kombu Island,
· Kerinci on Sumatra,
· Semeru and Krakatau and Merapi on Java,
· Sakura-Jima Japan,
· Veniaminof in Alaska,
· Lopevi in Vanuatu,
· Rabaul in New Britain.
Etna on Sicily recently covered Athens and other Mediterranean areas in Vog.

Though politically incorrect with the popularity of Global Warming, we wonder if the current global sulfuric emissions could cause a cooling event, such as occurred in 536AD?

As we watch the endless plumes of sulfuric gas pour out of the Kilauea’s vents, we wonder if we are watching something that is merely a local inconvenient irritation or a global cooling event that will effect the future course of human history.

Volcano in Hilo, Hawaii

The latest eruption of Kilauea is finally getting national attention. The photos of the lava flows through the old Royal Gardens subdivision are incredible. The flows have moved all the way down to a flat area above the ocean. At this rate it could hit the ocean at any time. Perhaps this activity is the reason for the uptick in tourism this January 2008 versus Janauary 2007.

But the fact that the vog (volcanic smog) has reached Oahu is the other reason for the attention. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is pouring out of vents on the summit of Kilauea; the Pu'u' O'o vent is one of the biggest emitters. Our small population in Hilo, though under a sulfur dioxide cloud for days last month, did not cause the stir that the air quality in Oahu is now getting. I have seen vog before, but never anything as thick as what we have seen recently. It looks like smog and completely hides our view (see the picture on my Feb 16 post). Right now the tradewinds have picked up, so Hilo is completely clear, presumably plastering Maui and Oahu with vog. SO2 is known to cause cooling in large quanities. It is interesting that our temperatures are in the low 60 degrees (F) here, much cooler than I expected in February.

The latest USGS updates reporting an increase in seismic activity, increased SO2, and inflating of the Pu'u' O'o indicates the volcano action may have just begun.

Hawaii Volcano Activity

Kilauea Volcano is really acting up right now. There aren't a lot of updates for us here in Hilo. Since the Volcanoes National Park visitor alert for hazardous fumes on 2/8 we have only had cryptic daily updates from the USGS which mentions that the sulfur dioxide concentrations at the summit are increasing and the Pu'u 'O'o vent is dangerous. The CAM of the Pu'u O'o vent today showed near zero visibility presumably due to the gases and ash being spewed. The Big Island earthquake activity has picked up as well. And finally, there is some fairly significant activity with the Tiltmeter for the northwest rim of Kilauea's caldera and the Pu'u 'O'o cone on the northwest flank of the active vent.
In Hilo today, we are finding our throats sore and near the mall is smells like rotten eggs. All these signs may point to an impending eruption.
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