One of world's most active volcanoes erupts in Hawaii

One of the world's most active volcanoes has erupted again in Hawaii.

Footage from Mount Kilauea on Hawaii's Big Island showed fountains of lava being spraying 30 metres into the air.

The volcano's activity is closely monitored, and people in the area are being kept at a safe distance.

It's the 31st time that activity has taken place on the volcano since it erupted in December last year.

What's the latest?

Kilauea is the most active volcano on Hawaii's Big Island.

There have been regular eruptions taking place there for the past forty years.

Activity at the summit - or top - of Kilauea has been coming and going since an eruption in December 2024.

The latest eruption saw lava shoot 30 metres into the air according to local media reports.

The eruption was contained within the summit crater and this new incident did not affect any nearby homes.

Why are there volcanoes on Hawaii?

Kilauea is one of six active volcanoes located on the Hawaiian Islands, which also include Mauna Loa, the largest volcano in the world.

Most volcanoes form at the boundaries of Earth's tectonic plates, huge slabs of Earth's crust and upper mantle, which fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

These plates are not fixed but are constantly moving at a very slow rate.

However, Hawaii is slightly different, as it doesn't sit on a plate boundary.

Instead, volcanoes have formed the long chain of islands because of the "Hawaiian hot spot".

A hot spot is made up of super-heated material deep inside the earth, located underneath one of these tectonic plates.

Here, magma - or molten rock - burns tunnels to the surface where it then creates a volcanic eruption.