The attractions? A small subdivision of one-acre lots, paved roads, an active community association and neighborhood watch, close to the town of Pahoa…and with lot prices averaging around $20,000 for the 40 sales so far this year. Six homes are in escrow and there are 14 active residential listings. Stunning image of fissure eruption within Leilani Estates courtesy of Greg Chunnĭespite that, Leilani Estates has been an active real estate market, with 12 home sales in the first four months of 2018, at prices from $71,000 to $316,000. According to the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory website, “the zones are based on the mapped locations of vents and lava flows, frequencies of past eruptions, written eruption accounts, and oral traditions of Hawaiians (chants and stories about eruptions).” In other words, residents of Leilani Estates knew they were building in an area at greatest risk for what is happening now. The experts have designated nine lava hazard zones, with lava flows most likely to occur in Zone 1 and least likely in Zone 9. For reference look for the town of Pahoa on each map. Lava Zone 1, shown in red on the hazard map, includes the East Rift Zone labeled on the first map above. Ironically, the website for Leilani Estates subdivision in Puna district, a name now known nationally thanks to the spectacular images of active eruptive activity, includes a copy of the USGS (federal government) map of Lava Hazard Zones with the caption “Leilani Estates in Zone 1”. The Basics – USGS Lava Hazard Zones on Hawaiʻi Island This map prepared by the USGS shows the 10 eruptive fissures in Leilani Estates as of two more have opened as of this blog posting. Photo credit: resident and photographer Greg Chunnįor residents of Leilani Estates subdivision in Puna district, that unwelcome scenario became reality last week. This is what I wrote: “Although every visitor dreams of seeing a lava flow up close and personal, every prospective buyer of Big Island real estate hopes NOT to see lava flowing to their doorstep!”

I first wrote about Big Island Lava Zones here on the Hawaii Life website in June 2009. The novelty of the ground-based instrument is its ability to measure the lava's surface and create a three-dimensional map within a span of minutes.Latest News Big Island Lava Zones: 2018 Kilauea Eruptive Activity Using the radar, the USF scientists were able to capture the thickening of Mauna Loa's lava flows. Shortly after Mauna Loa's eruption in late November - the first since 1984 - USF geosciences Professor Tim Dixon sent two graduate students, Taha Chorsi and Mahsa Afra, to Hawaii with a Terrestrial Radar Interferometer, a rare, ground-based instrument that measures where the landscape is changing and how quickly those changes are occurring.Ĭhorsi and Afra delivered the radar to USF alumna Lis Gallant, a National Science Foundation postdoctoral research fellow at the United States Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. 'We can't stop a volcano from erupting, but we can give people warning about the lava flow.' 'We want to make hazard maps that help people understand where they live and what the risks are,' Connor said. MOLASSES was created by USF geosciences Professor Chuck Connor, who says using the radar to gather data is essential in understanding volcano topography and improving the lava flow models. One such tool, known as MOLASSES, is a simulation engine that forecasts inundation areas of lava flow. The team is collecting data that will be used to create models that can help improve lava flow forecasting tools that are useful in determining how hazards impact populations.

Hawaii lava flow map