Kilauea is an active volcano located in the Hawaiian archipelago, one of the five shield volcanoes that make up the island of Hawaii (the island of Hawaii is the largest in the Hawaiian archipelago, thus giving its name to the U.S. territory of Hawaii). In Hawaiian, the word “kilauea” means “spewing” or “spreading,” referring to the recurring lava discharges it erupts. In fact, since January 1983, there has been a continuous flow of lava emitted from one of Kilauea’s cones, called “Puu oo.” In addition to this flow, another 33 have occurred in the archipelago since 1952.
In 1998, Kilauea was reported as the most active volcano in the world and is considered the most visited active volcano globally, an invaluable source of study for volcanologists. The volume of material expelled is enough to build three highways wide enough to circle the globe. About 90% of the volcano is covered by lava less than 1,000 years old.
Kilauea is the most recent of the volcanoes that emerged and created the islands of the Hawaiian archipelago, due to the movement of the Pacific Plate (one of the tectonic plates that make up the Earth’s surface) towards the region of the submerged volcano Lo`ihi, a movement that still occurs today.
In local tradition, the Hawaiian people believe that the volcano is inhabited by the goddess of volcanoes, Pele. The legends and tribal chants performed by the region’s inhabitants state that whenever the goddess is angry, the volcano erupts.
There are five shield volcanoes that gave rise to the island of Hawaii. Each in a corner of the island (hence the name “shield”), as they expelled a certain amount of lava, they gradually shaped the current island. They are, in order of age:
• Kohala (now extinct)
• Mauna Kea (dormant)
• Hualalai (dormant)
• Mauna Loa (active – partially located in the so-called Hawaii Volcanoes National Park)
• Kilauea (fully active – located entirely in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park)
On the island of Hawaii, Kilauea is located on the southeast flank of the much larger Mauna Loa. The large mass and height of Mauna Loa (4,169 m) contrasts with the low altitude of Kilauea, which is only 1,247 m above sea level.
Kilauea is considered a low-altitude shield volcano, radically different from the stratovolcanoes with sharp and high peaks, such as those of St. Helena in the Caribbean or Mount Fuji in Japan.
Source: www.infoescola.com by Emerson Santiago