expert lava junkies if you will. usgs scientists in protective gear collecting samples of the lava and bringing them here. we put them in the drying oven. reporter: the university of hawaii at hilo is helping run the rapid response lab for the mauna loa eruption. we got a rare look inside. these samples collected since the lava started spewing. it was thrown up in the air and landed and was they scooped it up while it was still molten and quenched it and if you look at it you ll see it is very, very bubbly, soft. like you can break it in your hand. reporter: researchers here quickly turning out data to help the usgs chart where the lava flow might be heading especially as it is inching closer to crossing saddle road, a major highway connecting east and west of the big island. they warn the slower pace is deceptive at times. it might look like a big wall of hot rock and it doesn t look like it is moving much but they