PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA 91109. TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011

PHOTO CAPTION                                             P-43918
                                                   April 15, 1994
                                                      Kilauea/L&C

This color composite C-band and L-band image of the Kilauea
volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii was acquired by the
Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-band Synthetic Aperature Radar (SIR-
C/X-SAR) flying on space shuttle Endeavour.  The city of Hilo can
be seen at the top.  The image shows the different types of lava
flows around the crater Pu'u O'o.  Ash deposits which erupted in
1790 from the summit of Kilauea volcano show up as dark in this
image, and fine details associated with lava flows which erupted
in 1919 and 1974 can be seen to the south of the summit in an
area called the Ka'u Desert.  In addition, the other historic
lava flows created in 1881 and 1984 from Mauna Loa volcano (out
of view to the left of this image) can be easily seen despite the
fact that the surrounding area is covered by forest.  Such
information will be used to map the extent of such flows, which
can pose a hazard to the subdivisions of Hilo.  Highway 11 is the
linear feature running from Hilo to the Kilauea volcano.  The
Kilauea volcano has been almost continuously active for more than
the last 11 years.  Field teams that were on the ground
specifically to support these radar observations report that
there was vigorous surface activity about 400 meters (one-quarter
mile) inland from the coast.  A moving lava flow about 200 meters
(660 feet) in length was observed at the time of the shuttle
overflight, raising the possibility that subsequent images taken
during this mission will show changes in the landscape.

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Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C and X-Synthetic Aperture Radar 
(SIR-C/X-SAR) is part of NASA's Mission to Planet Earth. The
radars illuminate Earth with microwaves allowing detailed
observations at any time, regardless of weather or sunlight
conditions. SIR-C/X-SAR uses three microwave wavelengths:  L-band
(24 cm), C-band (6 cm) and X-band (3 cm).  The multi-frequency
data will be used by the international scientific community to
better understand the global environment and how it is changing.
The SIR-C/X-SAR data, complemented by aircraft and ground
studies, will give scientists clearer insights into those
environmental changes which are caused by nature and those
changes which are induced by human activity.  SIR-C was developed
by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. X-SAR was developed by the
Dornier and Alenia Spazio companies for the German space agency,
Deutsche Agentur fuer Raumfahrtangelegenheiten (DARA), and the
Italian space agency, Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI).

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