The Hawaii Traveler

This week we turned our attention to volcanoes on Hawai’i, which is saying a mouthful. That’s because the entire state of Hawai’i owes its very existence to the volcano. Each island consists of at least one primary volcano, although many islands are composites of two or more–even tiny little Ni’ihau has its own volcano. The Big Island is the volcanic showoff, with five volcanoes dotting the landscape. They are: Kilauea, Mauna Loa, Mauna Kea, Hualalai and Kohala. While Mauna Loa is the largest active volcano on Earth, Kilauea produces the most lava each year.1. Name three volcanoes in the …read more

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It’s believed that Pele is the goddess of fire, lightning, dance, volcanoes and violence. Her mythos is varied, and complicated, but she’s best known on The Big Island, where some of her best work is still on display. It’s in her honor that we test our Hawai’i knowledge this week. Answers are revealed tomorrow, on Wednesday. Here we go:
1. Name three volcanoes in the Hawaiian Islands.
2. What is the elevation at the top of Haleakala on Maui?
3. Describe the “grafitti” written on the black lava rock along the highways on The Big Island.
4. What is “vog?”
5. Are there any …read more

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Telescopes on Mauna Kea
Flickr Creative Commons by
MGShelton

We were at Hapuna Beach at dusk, and stayed until well after the sun dipped down past the earth’s curve. I could see the moon’s reflection in the wet sand and looked upward and inland, and pointed to a blue star. I said, “I wonder if that’s Venus.”
As it turns out, it’s the observatories at the top of Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano, and also the highest peak in the world, when measured from its base at the sea floor. From the edge of the island, and way down at sea level, …read more

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