Catalog of Tephra Samples from 

Kïlauea’s Summit Eruption, March–

December 2008 

By Kelly M. Wooten, Carl R. Thornber, Tim R. Orr, Jennifer F. Ellis, and Frank A. 

Trusdell 

Open File Report 2009–1134 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

U.S. Geological Survey 
U.S. Department of the Interior 

KEN SALAZAR, Secretary 

U.S. Geological Survey 

Suzette M. Kimball, Acting Director 

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia 2009

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Suggested citation: 

Wooten, K.M., Thornber, C.R., Orr, T.R., Ellis, J.F., and Trusdell, F.A., 2009, 

Catalog of tephra samples from Kïlauea’s summit eruption, March–

December 2008: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2009-1134, 26 p.

[http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2009/1134/].

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does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. 

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured 

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contained within this report. 

Cover. Photograph of the billowing plume rising from the Halemaÿumaÿu 

Overlook vent inside Halemaÿumaÿu Crater, taken from the north rim of 

Kïlauea caldera, July 9, 2008 (USGS photograph by J.P. Kauahikaua). 

ii
iii

Contents

Introduction ...................................................................................................................1

Eruption Narrative.........................................................................................................2

Collection Methods .....................................................................................................10

General Description and Classification of the 2008 Kïlauea Summit Sample Suite....13

Kïlauea Summit Sample Descriptions.........................................................................14

Explanation of the Kïlauea Summit Sample Catalog, March–December 2008 ...........24

Table 1. Sampling Information and Descriptions .....................................................24 

Acknowledgments.......................................................................................................26
Catalog of Tephra Samples from 

Kïlauea’s Summit Eruption, March–

December 2008 

By Kelly M. Wooten1, Carl R. Thornber2, Tim R. Orr1, Jennifer F. EllisF

1

F, and Frank A. 

Trusdell1 

0BIntroduction 

The opening of a new vent within Halema‘uma‘u Crater in March 2008 ended a 

26-year period of no eruptive activity at the summit of Kïlauea Volcano. It also heralded 

the first explosive activity at Kïlauea’s summit since 1924 and the first of eight discrete 

explosive events in 2008. At the onset of the eruption, the Hawaiian Volcano 

Observatory (HVO) initiated a rigorous program of sample collection to provide a 

temporally constrained suite of tephra samples for petrographic, geochemical, and 

isotopic studies. Petrologic studies help us understand conditions of magma generation at 

depth; processes related to transport, storage, and mixing of magma within the shallow 

summit region; and specific circumstances leading to explosive eruptions. 

This report provides a catalog of tephra samples erupted at Kïlauea’s summit from 

March 19, 2008, through the end of 2008. The Kïlauea 2008 Summit Sample Catalog is 

tabulated in the accompanying Microsoft Excel file, of2009-1134.xls. The worksheet in 

this file provides sampling information and sample descriptions. Contextual information 

 

1

U.S. Geological Survey, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, P.O. Box 51, Hawai‘i National Park, HI 96718 

2

U.S. Geological Survey, Cascades Volcano Observatory, 1300 SE Cardinal Court, Vancouver, WA 98683 

1
for this catalog is provided below and includes (1) a narrative of 2008 summit eruptive 

activity, (2) a description of sample collection methods, (3) a scheme for characterizing a 

diverse range in tephra lithology, and (4) an explanation of each category of sample 

information (column headers) in the Microsoft Excel worksheet. 

1BEruption Narrative 

Starting in November 2007, the seismic tremor level and sulfur dioxide (SO2) 

emission rate at Kïlauea’s summit began to climb. By March 2008, the SO2 emission rate 

had reached 10 times the long-term background value, prompting Hawai‘i Volcanoes 

National Park to close the Halema‘uma‘u area to visitors. The tremor and SO2 increases 

were accompanied by the appearance of a new, vigorously fuming gas vent low on the 

southeast wall of Halema‘uma‘u Crater on March 12 (fig. 1). The new gas vent was 

about 70 m below the crater rim, almost directly below the visitor overlook on 

Halema‘uma‘u’s southeast rim, and has been informally designated as the 

“Halema‘uma‘u Overlook vent.” The crater rim at that location stands about 85 m above 

the crater floor. Incandescence, which was visible only at night, was first observed at the 

vent on March 13. Overnight on March 16-17, the size of the incandescent area began to 

increase, and, by March 18, the incandescent area had expanded to 30 m in diameter. 

2
Figure 1. Aerial photograph of the heavily fuming gas vent on the southeast wall of 

Halema‘uma‘u Crater on March 14, 2008, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park (USGS 

photograph by A.J. Sutton). 

At 0258 (all times are reported in Hawai‘i standard time unless otherwise noted) 

on March 19, the collapse of the incandescent rubble capping the gas vent was 

accompanied by an explosive eruption that scattered coarse rock debris over an area of 

about 50 hectares, opening and widening the vent to a diameter of about 35 m. Dense 

rock fragments and blocks were deposited up to 175 m beyond the Halema‘uma‘u Crater 

rim above the vent, and the visitor overlook and fence sustained damage from falling 

blocks (fig. 2), the largest of which measured 90 cm in length. Ash and lapilli were 

distributed downwind toward the southwest, covering the Halema‘uma‘u parking area 

and adjacent section of Crater Rim Drive (fig. 3). Fine ash was reported as far away as 

Pähala, 30 km downwind of the vent. No juvenile material was identified in the tephra 

3
generated during this initial explosive eruption, but an incandescent source was revealed 

in reflections off the base of the plume after the vent opened. 

Figure 2. Photograph showing damage to the visitor overlook fence caused by lithic blocks 

ejected during the March 19, 2008, explosive eruption, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. 

Photo taken April 14, 2008. 

The ejection of incandescent tephra was first captured overnight by a time-lapse 

camera on March 22–23. By the evening of March 23, nearly continuous ejection of 

incandescent particles was observed after dark from HVO about 2 km away. The 

following day, a sparse deposit of Pele’s tears, fresh-looking glassy black spatter, and 

glass-coated lithic fragments was observed at the visitor overlook. This deposit 

constituted the first lava erupted at Kïlauea’s summit since September 1982. 

4
Figure 3. Preliminary isomass maps prepared by D. Swanson in cooperation with B. Houghton 

(University of Hawai‘i), showing the isomass contours for the eight explosive eruption 

deposits from the Halema‘uma‘u Overlook vent in 2008, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. 

A more significant deposit of white to dark gray rock dust with a sparse vitric 

component was erupted at about 2200 on March 23, just as glow at the base of the plume 

was suddenly extinguished by the ash-rich plume. The brown to gray, ashy plume 

continued for 4 days, depositing ash near the crater rim. The ash was heavily reworked by 

wind and accumulated behind rocks. By 0755 on March 27, the plume began to change 

back to a typical white, relatively ash-poor plume. There were two more periods in late 

5
March when the plume was relatively ash-rich for an extended period of time—from 

1626 on March 27 to 1406 on March 28, and at 0800–1001 on March 30. There were 

hundreds of brief, tephra-bearing plumes after March 19 that were associated with 

collapses of the vent rim and walls. For the most part, these plumes deposited relatively 

minor amounts of ash. 

Between March 31 and April 9, tephra contained a significant component of 

Pele’s tears that peaked on April 3–4 and declined through April 8. On April 2–3, Pele’s 

hair was found accumulating on the downwind side of curbs in the Halema‘uma‘u 

parking area (fig. 4). 

Figure 4. On April 3, 2008, Pele’s hair was found accumulating on the downwind side of curbs 

in the Halema‘uma‘u parking area, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park (USGS photograph by 

D. Swanson). 

6
A second explosive eruption occurred at 2308 on April 9 and deposited lithic 

debris and juvenile tephra on the crater rim. This was followed by a third explosive 

eruption, intermediate in size between the previous two, on April 16 (fig. 3). The vent 

was obscured by clouds during the April 16 eruption, but seismic signals recorded its 

onset at 0357. The explosive eruption produced pinkish-gray lithic ash and fine lapilli 

(less than 4 mm in diameter), with small amounts (~5 percent) of Pele’s hair and tears, 

glassy spheres, and shards. 

Following a period of relative quiet that lasted through July, the fourth, fifth, and 

sixth explosive eruptions at the summit occurred in August and early September and were 

associated with continued widening of the vent by successive collapses of its rim and 

walls. The fourth eruption occurred at 2245 on August 1, ejecting a mixture of lithic and 

juvenile tephra, with clasts up to several centimeters in diameter, onto the crater rim. At 

0737 on August 27, the fifth explosive eruption also deposited a mixture of lithic and 

juvenile tephra, with clasts up to several centimeters in diameter, on the crater rim. 

Following these two explosive eruptions, the vent measured 60 m across. Both of the 

August eruptions produced only small amounts of tephra (fig. 3). 

The following week, the sixth—and largest—explosive eruption in 2008 occurred 

at 2013 on September 2. Both lithic and juvenile material was erupted during this event, 

but the magmatic component overshadowed the minor lithic component of 10–15 

percent. Oblate bombs up to 20 cm in length were found along the crater rim above the 

vent, and lapilli up to 10 cm across were found ~350 m away in the Halema‘uma‘u 

parking area. After this explosion, the vent diameter had increased by 12 m, bringing its 

diameter to 72 m across. The increase in vent diameter improved the view into the vent 

7
and, on September 5, the top of the lava column was first seen from the air; it was sighted 

several more times during the following weeks. 

The largest seismic signal produced during the explosive eruptions in 2008 

accompanied the seventh explosive eruption, which occurred at 0728 on October 12. This 

event produced a small component of lithic tephra, but was dominated by glassy scoria 

fragments up to several centimeters in diameter and mixed with lithic fragments. The 

eighth and final explosive eruption of 2008 occurred only two days later at 1607 on 

October 14. Again, the deposit was a mixture of both lithic and juvenile tephra, with a 

predominant juvenile component. There are two broadly distinct variants of juvenile 

tephra (1) scoriaceous lapilli and small bombs up to 10 cm across, with a dull gray 

surface coating of rock dust, and (2) bombs up to nearly 1 m long, which often consist of 

clots of lava interconnected by long, thick strands of Pele’s hair. Following this explosive 

eruption, the vent diameter was 84 m. 

In the weeks following the October 14 explosive eruption, collapses from the vent 

rim and walls continued to produce frequent dusty plumes (fig. 5). On December 4, a 

relatively large collapse partially blocked the conduit beneath the vent. By the time the 

dusty plume from the collapse had dissipated, the plume had become very weak. Lowlevel ash production from the vent, present throughout the eruption, dropped to 

insignificant levels, and all hint of nighttime glow vanished. Small collapses of the vent 

rim and walls continued through December, and, by the end of the month, the vent had 

reached a diameter of 104 m (fig 6). Views into the vent using an infrared camera to see 

through the weak plume showed that the vent had become choked with rubble at a depth 

of about 200 m. 

8
Figure 5. Time-lapse camera photograph from the northeast rim of Halema‘uma‘u Crater 

showing a typical ash event at 1542 Hawai‘i standard time on August 20, 2008, Hawai‘i 

Volcanoes National Park. 

Figure 6. Comparison photographs from a time-lapse camera in the observation tower at the 

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory showing east-to-west widening of the overlook vent in 2008, 

Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. Left: The vent on March 19, 2008, with an approximate 

width of 35 m. Right: The vent on December 30, 2008, with an approximate width of 104 m. 

9
2BCollection Methods 

Most of the summit lava samples collected during 2008 were simply picked from 

the ground by hand. In addition, wooden boxes (referred to as “tear catchers”) were 

placed on the ground near the rim of Halema‘uma‘u Crater within a few days of the 

opening of the vent. The tear catchers, with areas of 0.21 m2, 0.27 m2, and 0.34 m2, 

provide a collection surface for material ejected from the vent. One tear catcher was on 

the crater rim directly in front of the visitor overlook (TC1; fig. 7 right, fig. 8), and 

another was placed about 200 m southwest of the overlook in a position directly under 

the plume during typical trade-wind conditions (TC3; fig. 7 left, fig. 8). The third tear 

catcher, mounted on a tripod at a height of about 1 m, was briefly located next to the box 

under the plume (TC3) to compare the effects of eolian contamination, but the strong 

winds quickly destroyed the tripod mount on the box. This tear catcher was then moved 

to a ground position near the crater rim about 20 m west of the overlook (TC2; fig. 8). 

Though a fixed location is assigned to each box, the actual locations of individual boxes 

within these three areas shifted up to 20 m over time to accommodate changing 

conditions. 

10
Figure 7. Left: A tear catcher (TC3), deployed after the initial explosive eruption on March 19, 

was located approximately 200 m southwest of the vent, Halema‘uma‘u Crater, Hawai‘i 

Volcanoes National Park. Photograph taken March 27, 2008, looking northeast. Right: The 

overlook tear catcher (TC1) is on the crater rim in front of the visitor overlook fence, directly 

above the vent. The blue bucket attached to the fence is part of D. Swanson’s tephracollection array. Photograph taken March 10, 2009, looking southwest. 

A 4 by 6 foot tarp was deployed on August 6, approximately 20 m west of the 

visitor overlook, with rocks placed around the edges to keep it in place. This tarp was 

used as a clean surface on which to collect tephra fallout from the explosive eruptions. 

After the August 27 explosive eruption, the tephra was collected from the tarp, which had 

been melted through by the hot ejecta. The September 2 explosive eruption ejected more 

hot material that melted most of the remaining tarp. A new tarp was laid over the original 

on September 3, but no samples were collected from it before it was completely 

destroyed in the subsequent explosive eruption on October 12. 

A 10-station network of plastic buckets was also set up under the direction of D. 

Swanson to collect tephra fallout from the eruptive plume. Tephra was collected from the 

buckets nearly every day and used to calculate daily accumulation rates, background ashproduction mass flux, and explosive eruption mass flux. These calculations, however, are 

not addressed in this report. 

11
Figure 8. Map showing the location of the March 2008 eruptive vent and tear catcher (collection 

box) deployments in relation to Halema‘uma‘u Crater, Crater Rim Drive, and the 

Halema‘uma‘u parking area, Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. TC3 was removed midAugust, but TC1 and TC2 continued to be used through the end of the year. 

12
3BGeneral Description and Classification of the 2008 

Kïlauea Summit Sample Suite 

 Tephra deposited by the 2008 explosive eruptions includes lithic blocks, lapilli, 

and ash from the collapsed crater floor and conduit walls. This is mixed with a relatively 

small proportion of bombs, spatter, and Pele’s hair and tears that were molten or partly 

molten when erupted. Samples collected for petrologic study were mostly limited to those 

of apparent juvenile character. Most collection forays yielded only small amounts of 

Pele’s hair and tears, tiny glassy spheres or broken rods, shards of bubble walls, and bits 

of frothy pumice. Larger juvenile pyroclasts were associated with the larger explosive 

events and include discrete globules of vesicle-rich spatter and pumice, angular chunks of 

fresh or oxidized scoria, and glass-coated bombs and lapilli. Most of these specimens are 

either cored by, or mixed with, coarse to very fine foreign fragments, including juvenile 

components of crystal-mush clots, oxidized or unoxidized pumice and scoria, as well as 

anhydrite and holocrystalline, aphanitic basalt fragments. The predominant juvenile 

component in the 2008 summit tephra is sparsely olivine-phyric (less than 2 volume 

percent) with variable microphenocryst of plagioclase and clinopyroxene that are likely 

to have developed shortly before and during eruption and emplacement. Scarce but 

significant, small (up to 1 cm), open-textured gabbroic mush clots are found as cores to 

lapilli and also are mixed into the pumice and scoria tephra (fig. 9). 

13
Figure 9. Photograph of a thin section containing a crystal mush clot of open-textured gabbro 

coring a 1-cm glassy lapilli (KS08-2S). 

4BKïlauea Summit Sample Descriptions 

The Kïlauea summit samples have labels, such as “KS08-01M,” that begin with 

an identifying prefix “KS” with a two-digit year and a hyphen (for example, KS08-). This 

is followed by a unique numeric sample identifier (for example, “01”), representing a 

group of material collected at a particular time and (or) place, and a single alpha character 

(for example, “M”) corresponding to a “type” designation. The type designation is used 

14
to distinguish lithologic categories based upon bulk macroscopic characteristics. Ten 

categories were established for the tephra collected in 2008—types A, B, C, D, E, H, I, 

M, Y, and Z. Each of these categories is briefly described and depicted below. 

Type A—Apparently pure, glassy juvenile tephra. These samples are black and 

include Pele’s hair, Pele’s tears, small glass spheres, shards and rods, small lapilli without 

dense lithic cores, pure glassy spatter, and pumice (fig. 10). 

Figure 10. Photograph of type A lava sample KS08-02A. 

15
Type B—Glassy tephra with a mixed juvenile and lithic component. This 

includes pristine glassy-coated lapilli and small bombs cored either with dense foreign 

lithics (such as holocrystalline, aphanitic basalt) or with crystal-mush clots, pumice, and 

scoria (fig. 11). 

Figure 11. Photograph of type B lava sample KS08-02B. 

16
Type C—Apparently juvenile scoriaceous bombs and lapilli. These samples 

consist of clean black vesicular and microcrystalline scoria. No lithics or ash are apparent 

in the primary fabric, and the sample may or may not be glassy (fig. 12). 

Figure 12. Photograph of type C lava sample KS08-62C. 

17
Type D—Dust- or anhydrite-coated scoriaceous bombs and lapilli. These bombs 

have surfaces with a secondary yellow or white coating. The interior is clean, black 

scoria, and the samples are vesicular and microcrystalline. There are no lithics or ash in 

the primary fabric, and the sample may or may not be glassy (fig. 13). 

Figure 13. Photograph of type D lava sample KS08-62D. 

18
Type E—Pumiceous bombs and lapilli thoroughly mixed with coarse to very fine 

accidental lithic and juvenile fragments (fig. 14). 

Figure 14. Photograph of type E lava sample KS08-100E. 

19
Type H—Scoriaceous bombs and lapilli thoroughly mixed with coarse to very 

fine accidental lithic and juvenile fragments. These samples are microcrystalline or glassy 

black scoria and differ from types C and D because of the mixed accidental fragments 

contained in the sample (fig. 15). 

Figure 15. Left: Photograph of type H lava sample KS08-66H. Right: Thin section of a 

scoriaceous-to-pumiceous bomb, containing a mush clot and fragments of oxidized scoria, 

unoxidized pumice, anhydrite, and aphanitic basalt in a sparsely olivine-phyric pumiceous 

matrix (KS08-66H). 

20
Type I—Scoriaceous bombs and lapilli with lithic cores. These samples are large, 

angular lithic fragments with a thin coating of pasty, but mostly non-glassy 

microcrystalline spatter (fig. 16). 

Figure 16. Photograph of type I lava sample KS08-02I. 

21
Type Y—Lithic debris and ash with no apparent juvenile component (fig. 17). 

Figure 17. Photograph of type Y lava sample KS08-40Y. 

22
Type Z—Tear catcher (collection box) sample. Fragments in this category can 

vary in size (from ash to bombs) and in lithology. Most samples contain both a juvenile 

and a lithic component. Samples in this category may also contain material deposited 

earlier during the eruption and reworked by wind (fig. 18). 

Figure 18. Photograph of type Z lava sample KS08-99Z. 

Type M—Type M is the miscellaneous, or “catch all” category for anything that 

did not fit neatly in the other 9 categories or warrant its own type designation. 

23
5BExplanation of the Kïlauea Summit Sample Catalog, 

March–December 2008 

The Kïlauea summit sample catalog is found in the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet 

of2009-1134.xls. This table provides general information about each of the samples in 

the KS08 sample series, separates each sample into one or more lithologic groups, and 

provides a detailed description of each. The column headers for the table are explained 

below. 

7BTable 1. Sampling Information and Descriptions 

• Location Number—All sample numbers begin with the KS08- prefix and are 

followed with a numeric sample identifier. This number represents a single collected 

sample prior to being separated into its different “types.” See the Sample Number 

heading below. 

• Original Sample Number—Either a “T” or an “S” follows the location number, 

differentiating between a tephra (solid) or spatter (liquid or pasty) sample. Original 

sample numbers are listed here to prevent any confusion resulting from sample 

distribution during the early stages of the eruption, but these sample numbers are no 

longer used as of May 24, 2008. 

• Location—The general location where the sample was collected. If collected from a 

tear catcher, the tear catcher is specified. Refer to figure 8 for a location map of the 

tear catchers.

• Latitude/Longitude—The latitude and longitude in WGS84, measured using a handheld GPS instrument (error ~3-5 m), at the sample location. The GPS locations are 

24
25

exact (within error) for most of the samples, but represent a general area in some 

cases. Some of the samples were collected by walking a specific area and collecting 

ejecta from the ground. Only one GPS point was assigned to each of those areas. If 

the sample from two or more tear catchers was mixed, only one GPS point was 

assigned to that sample. 

• Date Collected—The date of sample collection. 

• Time Collected—The time of sample collection, Hawai‘i standard time (24-hour 

clock). 

• Deposited Time/Time Interval—The time or time span during which the sample 

was erupted. 

• Sample Number—The location number, with a letter designation for each lithologic 

type within the sample suite. Each sample is categorized as one of 10 lithologies 

ejected from the vent—types A, B, C, D, E, H, I, M, Y, and Z [see Kïlauea Summit 

Sample Descriptions]. 

• Sample Weight—Weight in grams of bulk sample on hand at HVO. 

• Sample Description and Sampling Notes—The description of the letter designation 

given to each lithologic group within the individual sample. A detailed sample 

description from field and laboratory observations, specific notes about sampling 

techniques, and any other pertinent sample information are also included. 
6BAcknowledgments 

We would like to thank Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park for giving us full access 

to all closed areas for observations and sample collection. 

HVO staff scientist Don Swanson spent numerous early mornings collecting 

samples, while conducting his research on the eruption, and also provided a technical 

review of the report. Larry Mastin (CVO staff scientist) and Jim Kauahikaua (HVO 

scientist-in-charge) also provided technical reviews to help clarify the report. Jane 

Takahashi (HVO) edited this report. 

26