Mauna Loa Observatory, Post Eruption Operations

M. Martinsen^1,2

¹Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309; 808-437-2126, E-mail: Matthew.Martinsen@noaa.gov
²NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory (GML), Mauna Loa Observatory, Hilo, HI 96720

The November 27, 2022 Mauna Loa eruption on the Big Island of Hawaii lasted for roughly 12 days. Lava flows cut off road access and electrical utilities to the NOAA-GML Mauna Loa Observatory. Small, offgrid photo voltaic (PV) systems have been installed on several of the buildings at the observatory enabling a limited number of NOAA and cooperative projects to come back online in limited capacities. 

The purpose of this poster is to communicate the capabilities of the current MLO PV systems, which projects are online and any details about how they have been modified for power consumption. It will also provide details on the helicopter operations enabling staff to service the MLO site and efforts to collect data on the neighboring Mauna Kea Summit approximately 24 miles to the North. 

Figure 1. Hawaii Volcanoes Obsevatory map showing final lava flow update.