First eruption of Mauna Loa, Hawaii’s largest active volcano, caused by the eruption of November 27, 1929 resurrected on October 27, 2005

The eruption began November 27, drawing spectators to the world’s largest active volcano to marvel at its fountains of glowing lava, which at times shot 200 feet into the air and threatened to cover a major highway on Hawaii’s Big Island.

The possibility of ash emissions and unpredictable eruptions are just some of the things that can happen.

Mauna Loa, the world’s largest volcano, began spewing molten rock Nov. 27 after being quiet for 38 years, drawing onlookers to take in the incandescent spectacle, and setting some nerves on edge early on among people who’ve lived through destructive eruptions.

Unlike Kilauea, Mauna loa does not erupt as frequently. So there’s not as much historical data on its lava and where it travels, said Tracy Gregg, associate professor of geology at the University at Buffalo.

“But the good news about lava is that – particularly on the island of Hawaii – it doesn’t really sneak up on people. He said people know when it will come.

Mike Zoeller of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said Tuesday that the lava was moving forward at 21 yards per hour.

The Daniel K. Inouye Highway is the major highway connecting the eastern and western halves of Big Island.

Predicting which infrastructure or buildings could be damaged by lava is much more difficult than it was as a result of all that changing in an hour.

“There have been some scares. In the 1870s, the Mauna loa lava flow tried to get close to Hilo, but even then it didn’t make it.

The 2016 November 27 Mauna Loa Rrift Eruption: A View from a Kilauea Viewpoint and the Yukawa River

Right now, there’s a “small chance that the flow would diverge and turn towards the west,” Lev said, where “it might interact with roads and structures in the Pōhakuloa Game Management Area.”

The Pohakuloa Training Area is in the north of the area. The unexploded ordnance was spotted in lava rocks near the eruption viewing area, Hawaii News Now reported.

But there are too many variables – such as how deep the military device is in the ground – to speculate what might happen if a lava reached it, Gregg said.

“There is always a chance that there will be another eruption on the flank, closer to communities, but not from the current location of the Kilauea eruption.”

Humans in the past have tried to divert or even stop lava from advancing. Workers have used bulldozers to build huge earthen walls to try to redirect lava after eruptions, such as that of Mount Etna in Sicily.

Mauna Loa began erupting November 27, choreographing a spectacular display that sent rivers of molten rock gushing down its side and drawing crowds of spectators hoping to see the flowing lava in person.

No matter what happens, Gregg said, residents and tourists should pay attention to warnings from local officials and heed any guidance from volcanologists.

But there’s been no history of a Mauna Loa rift eruption pausing and restarting, he said, “So we feel pretty confident that this eruption has in fact, paused and is probably over.”

The channels below the vent appear drained of lava, and the main flow front is no longer feeding them. Satellite imagery shows the cooling of the flow field.

The survey said that the main flow front was still glowing at a few spots at night and may drift northward slowly as it settles.

David Phillips, deputy scientist-in-charge of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, said over the weekend the lava flow that was threatening the highway was no longer active.

Lava supply to a Mauna Loa fissure ceased on Saturday, the observatory said, and volcanic tremor and earthquakes associated with the eruption “greatly diminished.”

“It was a beautiful eruption, and lots of people got to see it, and it didn’t take out any major infrastructure and most importantly, it didn’t affect anybody’s life,” he said at a briefing Tuesday.

Hawaiians and the Mauna Loa Volcanoes: What Happened to Pele in Kilauea During the October 13 eruption of Saddle Road?

Hawaii County Civil Defense Director Talmadge Magno said a one-way route that opened to manage traffic from throngs of people watching the lava would close Thursday.

Magno and other county officials had warned that slow-moving lava could force the closure of Saddle Road, also known as Route 200 or Daniel K. Inouye Highway. Motorists were bracing for an alternate coastal route that could add hours to their commute.

volcanic eruptions have a lot to do with Native Hawaiians. Many Hawaiians performed singing, chanting and dancing in order to honor Pele, the deity of volcanoes and fire, as well as leaving offerings known as “hookupu.”

It was not clear if the volcanoes stopped eruptions around the same time. The volcanoes can both can be seen at the same time from multiple spots in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park near Kilauea’s caldera.

“So, it’s possible that the lava could have already been diminishing or that the Mauna Loa eruption may have caused enough physical changes to stop it on its own,” Hon said. We don’t have a good answer for that at the moment.

Earlier Thursday, the U.S. Geological Survey raised the alert level for Kilauea due to signs that magma was moving below the summit surface, an indication that the volcano might erupt.