Sunday, October 03, 2004
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RING OF FIRE
Rumblings from Down Below
Saturday’s Topic du Jour at the bar started with a news report about Mt. St. Helens in Washington State and the predictions of its impending eruption.
I was still in utero during St. Helen’s last big tantrum, so my memory is a little vague, but I’ve always felt a kind of kinship, having arrived in the world the same year she made her big comeback.
It seems unlikely that Hawaiians would be excited about the rumblings of a mountain as far away as St. Helens when they have their own active volcanoes nearby, but at least in Cliff’s case, the reaction is the opposite. Having seen them up close and personal, he is very interested and was ready with stories and information as soon as the subject was broached.
I’ve decided my next island-hop should be to the Big Island to check out Mauna Loa and Kilauea. Thanks to Cliff (and my internet fact-checker), I can tell you with authority that Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on earth and one of the most active. Kilauea is the youngest in these parts, and for a long time was thought to be a satellite of Mauna Loa, but has been shown to have its own magma-plumbing system, so it’s a full-fledged volcano all by itself.
The discussion got me wondering about the volcanoes on Oahu, but Cliff assured me there hasn’t been any volcanic activity at all on this island for at least 10,000 years. I didn’t fact-check him on that, so correct me if he’s wrong. And I’ll start wearing a helmet outside, just in case.
Rumblings from Down Below
Saturday’s Topic du Jour at the bar started with a news report about Mt. St. Helens in Washington State and the predictions of its impending eruption.
I was still in utero during St. Helen’s last big tantrum, so my memory is a little vague, but I’ve always felt a kind of kinship, having arrived in the world the same year she made her big comeback.
It seems unlikely that Hawaiians would be excited about the rumblings of a mountain as far away as St. Helens when they have their own active volcanoes nearby, but at least in Cliff’s case, the reaction is the opposite. Having seen them up close and personal, he is very interested and was ready with stories and information as soon as the subject was broached.
I’ve decided my next island-hop should be to the Big Island to check out Mauna Loa and Kilauea. Thanks to Cliff (and my internet fact-checker), I can tell you with authority that Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on earth and one of the most active. Kilauea is the youngest in these parts, and for a long time was thought to be a satellite of Mauna Loa, but has been shown to have its own magma-plumbing system, so it’s a full-fledged volcano all by itself.
The discussion got me wondering about the volcanoes on Oahu, but Cliff assured me there hasn’t been any volcanic activity at all on this island for at least 10,000 years. I didn’t fact-check him on that, so correct me if he’s wrong. And I’ll start wearing a helmet outside, just in case.
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