New State-of-the-Art Volcano Monitoring Instruments Installed on Mauna Loa and Kilauea Mauna Loa from Hilo, Hawai`i

After several months of hard work, we have completed the installation of the most sensitive instruments available for monitoring the strain deep beneath the surface of a volcano. Three sites on Mauna Loa and one on Kilauea now have an ultra-sensitive strainmeter and a seismic package consisting of a three-component broadband seismometer and a strong-motion sensor. Currently the installations are being tested and modified where necessary. Later this year, a borehole tiltmeter may be added high in each hole. Once all of this is completed, the state-of-the-art instrumentation will radio data to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory in real time and make possible the early detection and tracking of events occurring deep within Mauna Loa and Kilauea with unprecedented clarity. See details of the installation work. Previous Feature Stories