Volcanologists!

Aloha Class! I hope you are getting excited for our upcoming field trip to the big island. There are five shield volcanoes that together form the island of Hawaii. On our trip to the Big Island we will be visiting three of the five volcanoes. The volcanoes we will visit are the Mauna Loa, the Mauna Kea, and the Kilauea.




Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on Earth in terms of volume. state of Hawaiʻi in the Pacific Ocean. It is an active shield volcano. The Hawaiian name "Mauna Loa" means "Long Mountain". Eruptions tend to be non-explosive and the volcano has relatively shallow slopes. Mauna Loa has probably been erupting for at least 700,000 years and may have emerged above sea level about 400,000 years ago, although the oldest-known dated rocks are not older than 200,000 years.



Mauna Kea is a dormant volcano on the island of Hawaii. Standing 4,205 m (13,796 ft) above sea level, its peak is the highest point in the state of Hawaii. It even snows up there! Yes, snow in Hawaii. Mauna Kea is over 10,000 m (33,000 ft) tall—significantly taller than Mount Everest. Mauna Kea is about a million years old.



Kilauea is an active volcano in the Hawaiian Islands, one of five shield volcanoes that together form the island of Hawaii. Kīlauea means "spewing" or "much spreading" in the Hawaiian language, referring to its frequent outpouring of lava. It has been continuously erupting in the eastern rift-zone since 1983, making it the longest rift-zone eruption of the last 200 years. Kilauea is one of the most active volcanoes on the planet! Although volcanologists are able to study it up close, USGS calls Kilauea the most dangerous volcano in the U.S.
Remember when we learned about the Hawaiian religion? Kilauea is the home to Pele, the goddess of volcanoes.
Lets hope we see the lava flow into the ocean (from a safe distance) on our trip!

Watch this video to prepare for some follow-up questions on the next post.