Hawaii's Mauna Loa spews molten lava in spectacular footage

AERIAL footage released by the U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory showed lava spewing from the volcano during a fiery eruption on Sunday (December 4).

The USGS reported Friday (December 2) that the main front of the lava flow was 3.2 miles (5.2 kilometers) away from the Daniel K. Inouye Highway, also known as Saddle Road and could possibly reach it in a week.

But the agency also said that because of the unpredictable nature of lava flows, it's "difficult to estimate when or if the flow will impact" the highway, which is the island's main east-west road.

Mauna Loa has been spewing lava for more than a week since it erupted on November 27.

Mauna Loa rises 13,679 feet (4,169 meters) above the Pacific Ocean and is part of a chain of volcanoes that formed the islands of Hawaii. It last erupted in 1984.