Mauna Loa volcano on the island of Hawaii (Big Island) started erupting for the first time in 38 years at the end of November 2022. Mauna Loa, meaning “long mountain” is the largest active volcano in the world!

We spontaneously decided to go there to witness the historic Mauna Loa eruption in the middle of the night/morning of December 1, 2022. The following few photos were carefully selected as best shots from that session. More new photos of Mauna Loa eruption coming soon, weather permitting!

After driving for about an hour, we pulled over as soon as we got a good glimpse from of the Mauna Loa eruption. It was very cold and dark outside making it more challenging to take good photos (or even set up equipment!)

We were still quite far from it to keep it safe and luckily I brought my telescopic zoom lens Our gas was running low But since we were so close to another vantage point we decided to drive up a bit more.

We drove up to a nearly the same elevation as the erupting crater to take the shot above. It was magical and unreal! In the photo above you can see the fountains of lava spewing hundreds of feet straight up into the air!

The shot above is one of my favorites. As the cosmic cool Moon (Mahina) is setting down in the West, Mauna Loa’s fiery earthly lava and hot smoke are rising up in the East. The ultimate Yin and the Yang experience.

The Sky Was on Fire – November 28, 2022

On the night of November 28 I stepped out of our house and saw the sky on fire! My first impression was reminiscent of something apocalyptic and mysterious. It looked like a gorgeous sunset, but it wasn’t. It was the glow of the Mauna Loa’s lava reflecting up into the night sky!

It was then that I felt and saw with my own eyes the awesome magnitude of the Mauna Loa’s eruption – from our house, even though it’s 34 miles (55km) away from us!

From that moment I had to get closer to witness and document the glory of Mauna Loa’s historic eruption.

The historic eruption of Mauna Loa was short-lived, but AWESOME! 7 months later Kilauea started erupting with a gorgeous lava fountain in June of 2023. Best photos coming soon!

The post Mauna Loa Volcano Eruption 2022: Exclusive Photos & Prints appeared first on Best Hawaii Photos.