Volcano Watch — Peering into a crystal ball: What tiny crystals can tell us about their trip through the magma chamber
Volcano Watch is a weekly article and activity update written by U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists and affiliates. This week's article was written by HVO post-doctoral researcher Heather Winslow. (A) Spatter cone samples from the Kīlauea middle East Rift Zone eruption in and near Nāpau Crater from September 15–20, 2024. Crystals were collected from samples like this. (B) Back-scattered electron image of a plagioclase crystal from the September 2024 Kīlauea middle East Rift Zone eruption. This crystal shows two distinct chemical zones from its core to rim. The core has a different composition from the rim of the