Volcano Eruption Sign Seen

HILO, Hawaii — A swarm of strong earthquakes indicates that the underwater volcano Loihi might be erupting, scientists say.

Seismographs at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory have recorded more than 1,500 tremors on the volcano during the past week.

While the tremors could mean Loihi is erupting, seismologist Paul Okubo and other scientists said it also could indicate a large movement of the flank of the volcano caused by a shifting fault zone.

Even if Loihi is churning out lava, it would be at least 100,000 years before it broke the ocean’s surface and became another Hawaiian island, scientists said.