Lava Has Created More Than A Mile Of New Land In Hawaii
The Kilauea volcano on Hawaii’s Big island is still erupting and the lava has created nearly a mile of new land. Officials from the US Geological Survey has said that there is no way of knowing when the volcano will stop erupting, or if more vents will open.
Earlier this week the lava spread into low-lying coastal cities in just two days, and destroyed more than 100 homes in the process. This is one of the most destructive volcanic activity in modern history, and has even completely destroyed Hawaii’s largest freshwater lake – Green Lake. Lava flowed into Green Lake on June 2nd, and within five hours the water from the lake had completely evaporated.
Lava has been continually flowing into Kapoho Bay, creating almost a mile of new land. This new land is now owned by the state, however will likely stay barren for quite some time. USGS geologist Janet Babb said “Lava continues to enter the ocean along a broad front in Kapoho Bay and the Vacationland area and it continues to creep north of what remains of Kapoho Beach Lots.”
“How soon vegetation comes back on a lava flow really depends on the type of lava it is, and how much rainfall there is in the area,” Ms Babb said, adding “There are flows on the Kona side of the island that are much older than some flows on east Hawaii, they are much older but they have far less vegetation and that’s just a reflection of the difference in rainfall.”
Once the lava cools and hardens it leaves a landscape filled with razor sharp volcanic rocks, and any land that forms within a national park becomes federal land. Lava has now covered more than 5,000 acres – approximately 20 square kilometers (7.8 sq. miles) – and is a lot thicker than previous eruptions. While the thickness of the lava is dependent on local topography, scientists have said that a lot of areas are 10-20 feet thick (3-6 meters).
