This video released by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), shows a virtual flyover of Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō, the active vent on Kīlauea’s East Rift Zone. The 3-D model was constructed from thermal images collected by USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists during a helicopter overflight on Wednesday, April 18, 2018.

In this model, the active lava pond in west pit, a small crater adjacent to the main Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō crater, appears hotter (bright yellow) than the surrounding area.

The floor of the main crater has been uplifting due to increasing pressure within the magma system beneath Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō. For scale, the main crater is about 920 feet in diameter.