DEATHMATCH! Hurricane vs. volcanoes

 - by New Deal democrat

As many of you probably recall, I frequently check the webcams at Kilauea volcano in Hawaii.  Usually the summit and the outlet cone quietly steam away, and the lava politely flows downhill towards the Pacific Ocean, but a few times a year, something of more interest like the opening of a new vent happens.

As to which, enter Hurricane Iselle.  Not only is this the first full fledged hurricane forecast to hit the Big Island since about forever, its currently forecast track takes it directly over Kilauea. Since Kilauea isn't having an explosive eruption, we won't see how a full fledged ash cloud interacts with hurricane wall clouds.  But, assuming the webcams stay in operation, we may see plenty of steam from the interaction with the lava flows and underground hot spots.

The bigger Deathmatch will probably be won by Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, the two 15,000 foot high volcanoes that dominate the island. I imagine they will rip apart much of the upper architecture of the hurricane.

Anyway, tomorrow should be an interesting day to watch!