Narmata Gurung
GEO 1090
Dec 10, 2023
Course Project Final (Geologic Field Trip Guide)
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Source: Public Domain
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, a designated UNESCO World Heritage site since 1987, is the active
volcanic area along the southeastern shore of Hawaii U.S., located southwest of Hilo on Hawaii's largest
island, also known as the Big Island. It occupies an area of 505 sq. miles. The Hawaiian Islands are an
archipelago, or group of islands in the North Pacific Ocean, roughly 2,400 miles off the coast of
California. Although it is geographically separated from the mainland of the United States of America,
Hawaii became a state in 1959. It encompasses the summits of two of the world's most active shield
volcanoes - Mauna Loa and Kilauea—25 in Hawaii National Park and three other volcanoes outside the
boundary which first erupted on the floor of the Pacific Ocean and emerged above sea level only after
countless eruptions.
The associated feature of the Pacific Ocean is transforming boundary, when the two plates don’t
necessarily move towards or away from each other but instead slide past each other laterally.
Although Kilauea and Mauna Loa are by far the most active, they combine with three other volcanoes to
make up the Island of Hawaiʻi. Mauna Kea, Hualalai, and Kohala all loom to the north of Hawaii
Volcanoes National Park. These three volcanoes are much older and less likely to erupt comparatively.
Hualalai, upon which Kailua-Kona was built, last erupted in only 1801which is still considered active.
Mauna Kea, which last erupted an estimated 4,500 years ago, is also likely to erupt again, although its
periods of quiet are much longer. Kohala, the oldest volcano on the island, has concluded its period of
eruptive activity.
Map of the summit area of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. (Source: Love Big Island)
The geologic features of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park include molten lava, sea arches, lava lakes, lava
tubes, Pele’s hair, islands within islands, and cinder cones. The park features extensive lava flows, some
of which are relatively recent. The black, hardened lava fields serve as a reminder of the continuous
volcanic activity in the area. The park also features lush rainforests, especially on the windward side.
These rainforests are home to a variety of plant and animal species, including native birds and endangered
species. Craters such as Kīlauea Iki Crater and Halema’uma’u Crater within the summit caldera of
Kilauea are another feature of the park, which is a focal point often emitting volcanic gases and, in the
past, contained a lava lake. The appearance of the crater can change dramatically with volcanic activity.
Source: Conde Nast Traveler Source: Hawaii Magazine Source: National Park Service
Some of the pictures of the infamous geologic features in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
The Islands on Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is formed by the volcanic activity breaching the ocean’s
surface which continues to grow as more eruptions occur, creating a shield volcano. Shield volcanoes
have broad, gently sloping profiles created by the relatively fluid lava they produce. Shield volcanoes are
characterized by their non-explosive eruptions, which typically result in the emission of lava flows. These
types of volcanoes tend to display effusive eruption styles, or high fluidity and low-viscosity conditions
when erupting. There are two effusive eruption subcategories that geoscientists use to describe lava flow
type. The accretion, or deposition, of highly fluid lava flows that we see on Mauna Loa can spread over
great distances and eventually cool as thin, low angle dipping layers away from the summit. Lava can also
erupt from vents along rift zones, or weak fracture points that develop on the flanks of the volcano.
As the Pacific plate continues to move, a chain of seamounts and islands are formed as older islands erode
and subside and the newer ones emerge. This repetitive process explains the formation of the youthful Big
Island of Hawai'i and the remnants of dormant volcanoes observed as the underwater seamount chain
extends to the northwest of the Hawaiian Islands in the direction of plate motion.
Hawaiian-Emperor Seamount chain – a trail of volcanic islands and seamounts created on a lithospheric
plate as the plate slowly shifts over a spot of localized melting sourced by a jet of hot material rising from
the deep mantle (Source: Public Domain)
These islands are the exposed peaks of the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain, a volcanic mountain range
mostly below sea level that extends over 3,700 miles. The volcanic islands of Hawaii represent the
youngest end of an 80 million years old and roughly 6,000 kilometers long mountain chain on the ground
of the Pacific Ocean. The Hawaiian-Emperor chain consisting of dozens of volcanoes is well known for
its peculiar 60 degrees bend. The cause for this bend is an abrupt change in the motion of the Pacific
tectonic plate motion change, and the slow drift towards the southward of the mantle plume that has
sourced the chain since its beginning 80 million years ago.
Source: PHYS Org
This chain results from hot spot volcanism, a type of volcanic activity with a heat source originating deep
within the Earth’s mantle, unaltered by the shifting plate tectonics above called hot spots that eventually
form plumes and partially melt cooler overlying rock to form magma. A hotspot is a region in the Earth’s
mantle where a plume of molten rises from the mantle to the surface eventually melting rock into magma.
which then continues to rise causing volcanic eruptions on Earth’s surface and resulting in overlapping
volcanic rock layers. The plume remains stationary as the Pacific Plate migrates over the hot spot. The
slow movement of the Pacific Plate over the Hawaiian hot spot forms young and active volcanoes above
the plume.
Hot Spot (Source: Public Domain)
These islands are the exposed peaks of the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain, a volcanic mountain range
mostly below sea level that extends over 3,700 miles. This chain results from volcanic activity with a heat
source originating deep within the Earth’s mantle, unaltered by the shifting plate tectonics above and
formed by lava flowing on the ocean floor and building layer upon layer into great volcanoes. When some
of it pushes its way to the surface, a volcanic eruption takes place.
The Pacific Plate, one of the several tectonic plates that move around the surface of the earth, migrates
slowly to the northwest. As it moves an estimated 2-4 inches per year, it carries with it any land that
formed during volcanic eruptions. The result is like an assembly line. The hotspot stays in one place,
producing new land through eruptions, and the Pacific plate carries them away. The geological formation
of the Hawaiian Islands mirrors the legendary journey of the Hawaiian volcano deity Pele to the island of
Hawaii. Pele is the goddess of volcanoes and fire and the creator of the Hawaiian Islands. Often referred
to as "Madame Pele" or "Tūtū Pele".
The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has been significantly shaped by the dynamic eruption history. A
significant eruption occurred in the East Rift Zone of Kilauea, creating the Lower East Rift Zone eruption
producing vigorous lava fountains, widespread lava flows, and the dramatic collapse of the summit’s
caldera floor, causing considerable changes to the park’s landscape.
Source: Public Domain
Another significant eruption was Mauna Loa eruption for the first time in 1984, cascading with lava flows
down to the island’s center of Hilo. This eruption occurred in the wake of a series of earthquakes that
began in 1983, approximately 9 miles beneath the southeastern flank of Mauna Loa; the largest of which
was a 6.6-magnitude quake in the Ka‘ōiki Fault System rupturing in 1983. The frequency of earthquakes
continued to increase, causing deformation and inflation of the volcanic slopes and seismic activity began
happening every 2-3 minutes, causing constant ground vibrations.
One of the most explosive eruptions in the park’s history occurred at the summit of Kilauea within
Halema’uma’u Crater. A series of powerful explosions sent rocks and ash high into the air, creating a
plume that could be seen from miles away. This eruption reshaped the landscape and led to significant
changes in the crater’s appearance. A small water pond appeared in Halemaʻumaʻu. The pond deepened
and enlarged into a small lake since it was first observed, measuring 160 feet deep as of December 1,
2020. An eruption in the crater that began on December 20, 2020, boiled away the water lake completely
and began to partially refill the crater with lava.
The extent of the active surface of the lava lake (orange) within Halema‘uma‘u crater. (Source: USGS
photo by J.M. Chang)
The islands of Hawaii are still being shaped by shifts in its tectonic plate, the Pacific Plate. This causes
magma to gusher out of volcanoes as lava.
