Research drill hole at the summit of Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii

An exploration hole has been drilled to a depth of 1262 m beneath the summit of Kilauea Volcano on the Island of Hawaii in order to obtain information about the potential for the occurrence of geothermal energy in a basalt environment. The hole was started at an elevation of 1102 m, and bottomed at an elevation of −160 m. Short intervals were cored, but the principal information obtained from the hole was in the form of physical measurements. The temperature profile through the hole was complicated, showing several reversals, and reached a maximum value of 137°C at the bottom. Geophysical logs indicate that rocks are fully water saturated to an elevation of about 500 m above sea level, and that the water in the rock has a salinity about equal to or slightly greater than that of sea water. This result supports the pre-drilling hypothesis that there should be a convection cell formed of warm saline water above a shallow magma chamber at Kilauea Volcano.