Rare Sight Of 65-Foot-Tall Lava Dome Captured in Hawaii.

Normally we are not so lucky to experience the running eruption of lava, but Mauna Ulu of Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii is a different story.

The lava eruption lasted a duration of 1,774 days which was spread across five years – how impressive!

The eruption produced about 460 million cubic yards of lava.

From 1969 to 1974, the lava eruption was able to be seen by the public via observation platforms in Hawaii.

Pictured above, the US Geological Survey posted this image taken in 1969 by photographer J.B. Judd.

See the photo above that shows the rare dome fountain that the Kilauea Volcano produced.

Measuring about 65 feet high, the dome fountain was one of twelve fountaining events during the first year of the eruption back in 1969. The eruption was so heavy that it reached the ocean, which was 7.5 miles away.

The symmetrical dome fountain lasted from October 10 to October 13 – and in this time reached up to 245 feet in height. Usually, you would see upward sprays of lava. But to see one as an orb is extremely rare.

Though the photo deceptively looks like the domed fountain is sitting in the middle of the water, the event occurred on land! The waves that you can see in the photo are actually ripples of lava.

Pu’u‘ Ō‘ō, which has been ongoing since 1983, wins that prize for the longest eruption— Mauna Ulu coming in close behind. The photograph is a reminder of just how active Hawaii’s volcanos have been in the past.