Week 4 - Volcanoes

 

I am so happy that this week I finally made it to Hawaii!  I am here at Kilauea which is Hawaii's youngest and most active subaerial volcano (above sea level).  It has been erupting continuously since the early 1980s.  Kilauea is a shield volcano, which means that it is almost entirely composed of lava flows, and the shape that it forms is similar to that of a warriors shield.

Like the other Hawaiian volcanoes, Kilauea was created by the Hawaii Hotspot.  This location has been well studied and is a mantle plume that has remained stationary as the plate has moved over it.  Why it is like that is not well understood and makes this location something special.

Kilauea was originally through to be a vent off of its neighboring volcano.  Interestingly, it wasn't until the chemical composition of the lava showed that Kilauea has its own magma chamber making it a distinct volcano.  Given the location of this volcano and its proximity to civilization makes it the USGS's most likely U.S. volcano to threaten lives and infrastructure.  Looking forward to seeing everyone next week from the next location on my geologic tour of the world.