Lava makes interesting patterns as it cools and sets. Here's a couple of photos that show what I mean. The top one is of the crater of Kilauea Iki (Little Kilauea). This is a secondary crater to the main Kilauea crater. You can see where the lava broke through the wall of the main crater during the last eruption in November 1959. In the background you can see gases coming from the active vent of Kilaeua. The crater of Kilaeua Iki is around 130m deep. From the rim where I am you can see different colours in the lava on the crater floor, meaning different minerals in the mix. You can also see interesting crinkly patterns in the lava. You can actually walk a trail that takes you right down to the old vent of Kilaeua Iki. I wouldn't like to do that, just in case the volcano decided to erupt while I was down there. The bottom photo is of a place where lava flowed through a forest. Of course it burnt the trees, but if you look carefully you can see the way that the lava has remained in the shape of the tree stumps (for larger photo, just click on it). I need more time at the lava fields of Hawaii, there are so many interesting things to see there.
Labels: Hawaii, volcano
# posted by Bart Bear @ 3:47 pm
