Heavy cast of vog containing sulphur dioxide awaiting for an acid rain : A helicopter trip to Kīlauea shield volcano in Hawaii (Big Island)
Climate of Hawaiian Islands
The climate of the Hawaiian Islands is tropical but it experiences many different climates, depending on altitude and weather. Vog (volcanic fog) can envelop the island. The gas plumes of the Kīlauea Volcano create a blanket of vog which the dominant trade winds mostly deflect toward the Kona coast on the west side of the island of Hawaiʻi.
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is on Hawaii Island (the Big Island). At its heart are the Kīlauea and Mauna Loa active volcanoes. The Crater Rim Drive passes steam vents and the Jaggar Museum, which features volcanology exhibits and a viewpoint overlooking Halema'uma'u Crater. Thick ferns mark the entrance to the Thurston Lava Tube (Nāhuku). The Chain of Craters Road weaves over lava. Trails crisscross the park.
Kīlauea shield volcano in Hawaii (Big Island)
Kīlauea is a currently active shield volcano in the Hawaiian Islands. Located along the southern shore of the island, the volcano is between 300,000 and 600,000 years old and emerged above sea level about 100,000 years ago. It is the second youngest product of the Hawaiian hotspot and the current eruptive center of the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain. Kīlauea's eruptive history has been a long and active one; its name means "spewing" or "much spreading" in the Hawaiian language, referring to its frequent outpouring of lava.
In Hawaiian mythology Kīlauea is the body of the deity Pele, goddess of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes.
Kīlauea's high state of activity has a major impact on its mountainside ecology, where plant growth is often interrupted by fresh tephra and drifting volcanic sulfur dioxide, producing acid rains particularly in a barren area south of its southwestern rift zone known as the Kaʻū Desert. Nonetheless, wildlife flourishes where left undisturbed elsewhere on the volcano and is highly endemic.
William Ellis, a missionary from England, gave the first modern account of Kīlauea and spent two weeks traveling along the volcano; since its foundation by Thomas Jaggar in 1912, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, located on the rim of Kīlauea caldera, has served as the principal investigative and scientific body on the volcano and the island in general.
[We headed straight to Kilauea by way of the saddle running between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, Hawaii’s tallest mountains. Kilauea is one of the most active volcanoes on earth and has been continuously erupting since 1974.
We explored the East Rift Zone of Kilauea, including Kilauea Crater, Pu’u O’o Vent and its lava flows that are currently entering the Pacific Ocean where white smoke trail was clearly visible at the coastline from our helicopter.]
Heavy cast of vog containing sulphur dioxide awaiting for an acid rain : A helicopter trip to Kīlauea shield volcano in Hawaii (Big Island)
Climate of Hawaiian Islands
The climate of the Hawaiian Islands is tropical but it experiences many different climates, depending on altitude and weather. Vog (volcanic fog) can envelop the island. The gas plumes of the Kīlauea Volcano create a blanket of vog which the dominant trade winds mostly deflect toward the Kona coast on the west side of the island of Hawaiʻi.
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is on Hawaii Island (the Big Island). At its heart are the Kīlauea and Mauna Loa active volcanoes. The Crater Rim Drive passes steam vents and the Jaggar Museum, which features volcanology exhibits and a viewpoint overlooking Halema'uma'u Crater. Thick ferns mark the entrance to the Thurston Lava Tube (Nāhuku). The Chain of Craters Road weaves over lava. Trails crisscross the park.
Kīlauea shield volcano in Hawaii (Big Island)
Kīlauea is a currently active shield volcano in the Hawaiian Islands. Located along the southern shore of the island, the volcano is between 300,000 and 600,000 years old and emerged above sea level about 100,000 years ago. It is the second youngest product of the Hawaiian hotspot and the current eruptive center of the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain. Kīlauea's eruptive history has been a long and active one; its name means "spewing" or "much spreading" in the Hawaiian language, referring to its frequent outpouring of lava.
In Hawaiian mythology Kīlauea is the body of the deity Pele, goddess of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes.
Kīlauea's high state of activity has a major impact on its mountainside ecology, where plant growth is often interrupted by fresh tephra and drifting volcanic sulfur dioxide, producing acid rains particularly in a barren area south of its southwestern rift zone known as the Kaʻū Desert. Nonetheless, wildlife flourishes where left undisturbed elsewhere on the volcano and is highly endemic.
William Ellis, a missionary from England, gave the first modern account of Kīlauea and spent two weeks traveling along the volcano; since its foundation by Thomas Jaggar in 1912, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, located on the rim of Kīlauea caldera, has served as the principal investigative and scientific body on the volcano and the island in general.
[We headed straight to Kilauea by way of the saddle running between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, Hawaii’s tallest mountains. Kilauea is one of the most active volcanoes on earth and has been continuously erupting since 1974.
We explored the East Rift Zone of Kilauea, including Kilauea Crater, Pu’u O’o Vent and its lava flows that are currently entering the Pacific Ocean where white smoke trail was clearly visible at the coastline from our helicopter.]