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Kilauea volcano video shows a century of scary eruptions on the Big Island

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A newly released video by the National Park Serivce offers a fascinating chronicle of a century of volcanic eruptions on Hawaii’s Big Island.

“100 Years in 100 Seconds” maps the eruptions and resulting changes in landscape at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. It’s part of a new website that celebrates the park’s 100th anniversary coming up next year.

Hawaii Volcanoes opened in August 1916, the same month the National Park Service was created.

Centennial hikes and a national parks quilt show are among the special activities that will take place in 2016 at the Big Island park. But the Kilauea volcano, which has been erupting since 1983, remains the star attraction.

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In an FAQ, park officials note that “Most of the lava is transported by lava tubes to the ocean, where it fragments.”

Molten lava, however, has destroyed 187 structures during the past 32 years, including the Wahaula Visitors Center, the Mauna Kea Congregational Church, the Kalapana Drive-in and scores of homes.

Hardened lava has created 500 acres of new land.

Eruptions continue, but a Tuesday (Sept. 8) update from the Hawaii Volcanoes Observatory noted that “none of Kilauea’s lava flows or breakouts from existing flows currently pose a threat to area communities.”

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