File:Activity at Kilauea, Hawaii (MODIS 2015-02-27).jpg

English: The Moderate Resolution Imagine Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA�s Aqua satellite captured a striking true-color image of Hawaii on February 16, 2015. This cloud-free image shows the brilliant greens and browns of the island of Hawaii (the �Big Island�), as well as the islands of Maui, Kahoolawe, and Lanai. Four red hotspots near the southeast coast of the Big Island mark actively flowing, hot lava from the Kilauea volcano.

Living with this volcano has become a way of life for islanders, as the current eruption has been continuous since 1983. The slow eruption carries little risk of explosive danger, but the steady lava flow has impinged on communities, roads and businesses over time. The eruption has created air quality issues due to burning vegetation and low levels of sulfur dioxide emitted from Kilauea. The smoke, a mixture of gases and fine particles, can be irritating to eyes and to the respiratory system, causing burning of nose and throat, and causing breathing difficulties. People living near the lava flow, particularly near the active flow in Puna, are advised to take precautions against prolonged exposure.

On February 26 the Hawaii County Civil Defense reported that the morning assessment showed no change with any of the down slope lava flow areas. There continued to be surface breakouts and breakouts along both margins upslope of the flow front continue, which indicate that lava from the source continues to supply fresh lava to the tube system and the down slope areas. The leading edge of one breakout is about west of Highway 130. No communities are immediately threatened by the flow.