Last December, one of the most active volcanoes in the world returned to life. When Kilauea (kee-lah-WAY-ah) began erupting, Cheryl Gansecki gathered her family and jumped in their car. But she didn’t drive away from the volcano—she drove toward it!
Gansecki is a volcanologist, or a scientist who studies volcanoes. She lives on what is known as the Big Island of Hawaii. She’s used to seeing Kilauea erupt. From 1983 to 2018, lava oozed out of a vent, or opening, on the side of the volcano. In 2018, a new vent formed. Lava flowed into areas where people lived. Hundreds of homes were destroyed.
But this time, the lava has remained in one area—the crater, or pit, at the center of the volcano. So officials at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, where the crater is located, decided it was safe for visitors to view the eruption.
“The glow of the lava lit up the sky,” says Gansecki.