Preview

Mauna Kea Research Paper

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
284 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Mauna Kea Research Paper
The tallest volcano on Earth is Mauna Kea, one of the 5 volcanos that make up the Big Island of Hawaii. The summit of Mauna Kea is 4,205 meters above sea level, but its true height is much larger. When measured from the sea floor, Mauna kea is more than 9,000 meters tall, making it the tallest mountain on Earth.The tallest volcano on Earth is Mauna Kea, one of the 5 volcanos that make up the Big Island of Hawaii.

Mauna Kea is part of the network of volcanos above the Hawaiian hotspot. The tectonic plate that has the Hawaiian islands is slowly moving above the hotspot, and it recently carried Mauna Kea away from the hotspot. Scientists believe that Mauna Kea is now dormant; it last erupted about 4,500 years ago. Although, researchers do think it’s going to erupt again, the time between eruptions is measured in hundreds of years. The most active volcano on the island, Kilauea, erupts every few years.
…show more content…
Geologists have even found deposits created by glaciers during recent ice ages. There were probably three glacial episodes in the last 200,000 years. People regularly ski on the slopes of Mauna Kea.
Although Mauna Kea is the tallest volcano, it’s only about 40 meters taller than the nearby Mauna Loa, which is the biggest volcano on Earth. Mauna Loa has more than 75,000 cubic kilometers of

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Mount Rainier is home to Columbian black-tailed deer, black bear, and elk. You can visit Mount Rainier year round because it is open all year long. The most popular time to go to Mount Rainier is in July or August because that is the time when the wildflower is in full bloom.…

    • 566 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The volcanic mountains are Mount St. Helens in North America, Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines, and Mount Kea and Mount Loa in Hawaii.…

    • 424 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Crater Lake is a result of a volcanic explosion that happened about 7,000 years ago. A long time ago, the pacific oceanic plate was gradually moving under the pacific continental plate in the process of plate tectonics. The pressure shaped the land to move upward and create a line of mountains that are currently located on the Cascade Range. These lavas piled and cooled on top of each other resulting in mountains like Mazama and Hood. Mount Mazama was built by successive flows of both andesite and dacite lavas. Mount Mazama was a stratovolcano, which was about 12,000 feet high after series of ash, cinders, and pumice explosions built it upward. During…

    • 980 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    At a hotspot, the underlying mantle is hotter than average causing ‘mantle plumes’ to rise to the bottom of the lithosphere, find a thin or weak part of the lithosphere, and breaks through. In the case of the Hawaiian islands, the hotspot is underneath an oceanic plate and the lava has built up until it is higher than the surface of the sea. These hotspots remain in the same place in relation to the mantle, but the plates move across the hotspots. The Pacific plate has moved across a hotspot in the ocean leaving the chain of Hawaiian Islands which have been formed at different times over millions of years. By dating the rocks which make up the Hawaiian Islands, it is clear that the tectonic plate must be moving in relation to the hotspot- a key piece of volcanic evidence.…

    • 1251 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Kohala is the oldest of five volcanoes that make up the island of Hawaii.[3] Kohala is an estimated one million years old—so old that it experienced, and recorded, a reversal of magnetic field 780,000 years ago. And it have last erupted 120,000 years…

    • 963 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    volcano is a historical event where 100s to 1000s of people go to see it yearly.…

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Covering over 85% of Hawaii, Mauna Loa meaning long mountain, is the earth's largest volcano. Located on the main island of Hawaii, Mauna Loa pushes 12 million cubic meters of lava into Hawaii each day. It rises over 4 km above sea level. But, below the sea, it drops another 5km to the sea floor which is then indented another 8km under the weight of this giant land form. This means the total height of this volcano is a whooping 17km high from the base of the volcano to the crest. It is amid the earth's most currently active volcanos with its most recent eruption in 1984 being both extremely beautiful and destructive. It has been documented erupting 33 times between 1843 and 1984 at 5-6 year intervals and scientists currently expect an eruption…

    • 138 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Arizona is the only state with official neck wear. Named in 1973 it is the Bola tie, it also called a string tie. It consists of a cord held in place by an ornamental clasp at the neck. Originally, a bola was a spanish weapon made up of two or three strings with heavy balls at the end. It was whirled and flung at the Enemy.…

    • 1209 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Grand Canyon is in Arizona and its long-axis length is 227 miles. The width of the Grand Canyon is 4 to 18 miles. The Grand Canyon was carved by the Colorado River. President Theodore Roosevelt was a major component of preservation of the Grand Canyon area,visited on occasions to hunt and enjoy the scenery. The Grand Canyon is a river valley in the Colorado Plateau,it is significant because of the ancient rocks.…

    • 490 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mount St. Helens Essay

    • 546 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii is known to be the tallest volcano in the world. Mauna Kea has a elevation of about 13,796 ft. but the base of the volcano is close to 19,685 ft. below sea level making. Mauna Kea is over 33,000 ft. tall making it the tallest mountain on earth. Along with being the world's tallest volcano it is also home of the world's largest astronomical observatory.…

    • 546 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The most recent eruptive period was in the 1980’s. Due to USGS (United States Geological Survey) geologists observations of a large bulge measuring 140m on the north face of the volcano. Using modern laser and radar technology they were able to track the movements of this bulge in order to predict when the volcano was in danger of erupting from a an observation tower 6 miles away. With this data collected the authorities were convinced to shut off the volcano to the local populations who make use of the volcano’s fertile soil for a large logging business and many recreational users who walk dogs or come to enjoy the views. As will be shown later, the shutting of the volcano saved many local thousands of tourists, workers and locals lives alone.…

    • 764 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mauna Loa Essay

    • 767 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Since Mauna Loa is part of Hawaii, it is formed by a hot spot (“Hawaii: Geology”, n.d.). The Pacific Plate, known as a hot spot, is present in Kilauea, Loihi seamount, and Mauna Loa. The plate enabled the formation of Mauna Loa, thus produces consecutive eruptions. Although eruptions can be hazardous, the ones in Hawaii are considerably not destructive (“Hawaii: Geology”, n.d.). Mauna Loa and the near Kiluaea (“Hawaii: Geology”, n.d.) are the only relatively active volcanoes in Hawaii. One of the first eruptions of Mauna Loa occurred about 700,000 to 1,000,000 years ago (“Mauna Loa Earth’s”, n.d.). It is estimated every six years the Mauna Loa erupts lava flows (“Frequently Asked”, n.d.) An initial documented account of an eruption was in 1780 (“Eruption History”, n.d.). The volcano has reportedly erupted thirty-three times since 1843, making it one of the most active volcanoes on the…

    • 767 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Hawaii Research Paper

    • 1788 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Hawaii attracts many tourists per year because of its history, geography, and entertainment. This state is known for its many islands, volcanoes, and climate as well. When I think about Hawaii all I imagine is standing on the beach overlooking the ocean getting hit with the nice warm breeze hearing laughter and seeing smiles. Since “Hawaii is one of the most isolated places on Earth” it makes vacationing there completely stress and worry free, because you are far away from home and nothing on your mind but having a great vacation (Neri p.4).…

    • 1788 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mt. Gerabaldi

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages

    If Mount Garibaldi were to erupt, the town of whistler and Squamish would be in danger, but it hasn’t erupted in a very long time. The last eruption was in 8051 BC. Mount Garibaldi began erupting about 250,000 years ago and has grown steadily since then. Like most of the Cascade volcanoes, it has its own origins in the Cascadia subduction zone; a long convergent plate boundary that stretches from mid- Vancouver Island to Northern California. The first European to see the mountain in 1792, Captain George Vancouver, traded with the local natives in the area. When skiing became popular in the 1940s, Vancouver skiers began to search the glaciers and rugged mountains within the park. Eventually in the year of 1944, a club of skiers completed the first ever ski of Mt. Garibaldi.…

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mauna Loa is the biggest mountain in the world and one of the most active. It rises over 4 kilometers above sea level. Its coordinates are 19.4721 longatude and 155.5922 latitude. It is located in Hawaii. The 74.5 mile long volcano covers half of Hawaii. The massive volcano rises almost 2.5 miles above sea level. The volcano measures 56,000 feet from its ocean floor base.…

    • 265 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays