I climbed up there, twice, and still didn't make the top. An incredibly beautiful mount. Kinda sad to see the old hometown at the beginning of the video. Nothing there now but cinders and ashes.
Aloha Professor Tim, I’ve never heard of any activity at West Maui but have been told that Haleakala will erupt again some time in the near future but when we ask how soon, you see that blank look on their faces. I am talking about the Hawaii State Civil Defense and this question always comes up during eruptions on the Big Island of Hawai’i. Just a note, I have been complaining about the smell of Sulfur from our drinking water here on Oahu, Tantalus area, and we get Sulfur stains on the walls of our showers also. The fact that we still have submarine volcanoes that still erupt between Kauai (cir:1956) and Oahu, then one just north of Maui and another on the east coast of the Big Island, I would say that anything is possible and not off the table. The Hawaiian Islands sits on top of a major hotspot and we are told here that the islands move northeastern a few centimeters a year and moving towards Japan. It seems to me after watching this channel for years that hot lava below us can just about come up anywhere around the Hawaiian Islands but I will probably not see that in my lifetime. 😮
Yeah it is fascinating with the decline in activity appearing to be somewhat logarithmic involving longer and longer intervals. Haleakala is interesting as it is still at that more active interval being the historically 3rd most active volcano in the Hawaiian islands (not counting the one that hasn't reached the surface yet). It has only been a few hundred years since its last eruption and seems like it might be "cannibalizing"/consolidating volcanism from adjacent volcanoes likely making the west Maui volcano less likely to erupt. The prospects of an eruption in and around Honolulu is interesting with both sulfur and deep quakes raising prospects of the volcanic core the area is built up on not being quite dead. With the area in question being so densely populated an eruption there while unlikely would have potentially devastating consequences.
I work for the State Civil Defense and can confirm we give lots of blank faced stares haha. We should be publishing a volcano response plan soon but most of it is based on the Hawaii Volcano Observatory( HVO) information, which is probably the best government source on anything volcanoes. We did include Haleakala though along with the lava flow zone you can find here: www.usgs.gov/media/images/map-lava-flow-hazard-zones-maui-island-hawai-i
Haleakala will likely erupt again at some point, but near future in the way we humans think about it may be a bit hyperbolic. "Near future" on a geologic timescale might be in a century or two, it could of course happen sooner. Its eruption rate from what I remember off the top of my head is similar to Hualalai so a few centuries of dormancy is probably the norm.
There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. With all dead, well, with all dead there's usually only one thing you can do.
The moment I saw the thumbnail I immediately thought "rejuvenation phase." But I never once considered it for western Maui which is much closer to the hot spot than O'ahu was during its rejuvenation period.
Thanks as always! It is fascinating to learn about the various life cycles of volcanoes. I wish you can cover this topic more. It is also interesting (maybe very slightly worrying at times) to discuss about volcanoes which have not erupted for quite a long period of time, but may still be active. This makes me wonder if you could cover more of the lesser-known Philippine volcanoes, some of which, like Mount Iriga, look a bit like Mount St. Helens.
This is a really weird, but somewhat related thing that I've been thinking about; Hawaii seems to have two parallel lines of activity. There's Loihi-Kilauea-Mauna Loa-Hualalai-Kaho'olawe-Lanai which seems to be centered on Kilauea and tapers off as expected, and then there's Mauna Kea-Kohala-Haleakala-West Maui, which progresses in a rather more unusual pattern with Haleakala weirdly quite active, even compared to the also post shield stage Mauna Kea. I'm sure that this is most likely just a coincidence, but might be fun to look into. I don't think I've ever come across anything mentioning this, as Hawaii is usually accepted as the most textbook hotspot model (albeit on the large side). Could Hawaii perhaps be a cluster of multiple hotspots, thus accounting for its hyperactive production? Or is there some influence from ocean floor fracture patterns like the Canary islands? Or perhaps some unusual influence from the North Hawaiian Arch volcanic field? I'm definitely not qualified to assess this beyond the initial observation so I'd love some proper geologist input!
Yes, the idea of different "tracks" has been proposed by geologists in the past; the page for "Hawaii hotspot" on Wikipedia has a neat image from a paper showing proposed tracks. They're a little different, being Kama'ehuakanaloa(formerly Lō'ihi)-Mauna Loa-Hualālai-(presumably)Māhūkona-Kaho'olawe-Lāna'i-West Moloka'i-Ko'olau-Waianae-Kaua'i and Kīlauea-Mauna Kea-Kohala-Haleakalā-West Maui-East Moloka'i. (Ni'ihau in this model is the endpoint of a third track.) The image shows proposed tracks for the entire Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain with tracks starting and stopping along the way, with one place around Midway having as many as four parallel tracks at the same time.
Are you able to make a video about the other volcanoes in the chain, especially Kahoolawe, since that one I don’t see any rejuvenated flows on it yet, and the others just interest me so much edit: I see only 5 ultra tiny rejuvenated flows/deposits and only 3 are really even noticeable
Far more likely Le Perouse area of Maui would see a eruption last erupted in 1790s this is just past the Makena area. Do a video on that eruption thanks
So... Does that mean that the Kohala Volcano on Hawaii Island itself experience one of these rejuvenations? 🤔 And is that Kauhako vent on North Central Molokai REALLY as old as you say!? It's on the rainy side of the island! And looks rather well-preserved... Lotta interesting points made in this video. And for better or worse... This video seems to raise more questions than it answers 🙀🤔🙀🤔
For the record... In science... Raising more questions than answering... Is usually beyond fascinating and even exciting for some people. So... Not a complaint or criticism by any means!
Volcanology doesn't yet have all the answers, puzzle pieces are missing, sometimes misconceptions are accepted as truth until more evidence to the contrary is shown. Science in general seems to be a case of every answer you find, you also wind up with 5-10 new questions alongside it. Personally I think Kohala could possibly enter a rejuvenated state but I'm no expert. I think it's of similar age to West Maui from what I remember reading. If not there's always some risk of phreatic activity given that phreatic eruptions have in fact happened even in Oahu in > 10,000 years if I recall correctly
Kohala hasn't entered a rejuvenated stage yet, and while it most likely will, it is not a guarantee that all hawaiian volcanoes will have a rejuvenation stage. The Waianae volcano of Oahu is notable for not having any rejuvenation activity, which may have been caused by Ko'olau at its maximum size existing right next to it -- Kohala is in a similar situation with Mauna Kea, Hualalai, and Mauna Kea all bunched up around it. As for Kauhako crater...it really is that old! Rocks are hard, and that entire peninsula was formed from solid lava flows from effusive eruptions, as opposed to cinders that would erode more easily.
Could you do a video on the 1955 submarine eruption 56 miles northeast of Necker Island when you get a chance? That eruption was the westernmost historic volcanic eruption in the history of the Hawaiian Islands.
This is a bit random but I came across a mesa (might not be a mesa as there are rivers draining off of it, and it's not uniformly flat on top, but it's the closest description I can come up with, unless buttes can be over 10km²) on Google Earth in of the vicinity of Scatter River Old Growth Provincial Park in extreme north eastern British Columbia. More specifically it located here: 59°35'09"N 125°03'17"W. What's odd is I cannot find a name for it and it seems to have odd features for a mesa such as a 1.5 hectare lake. I'm sure it is named and recorded (it's too close to a big park for it to be unnamed if not directly within the park). I kind of want to go up there in the future just to see what it's like.
On that big island of Hawaii the eruption points are 25 miles apart. That's not just the two main mountains. There are many locations where lava erupted and they fit the 25 mile separation when I measured them. 25 miles even fits the recent downslope of the lava lake on top of the mountain. Thee place likee 25 miles I guess. Something about the crusts binding I guess.
Great video! Is it possible that this could be a super volcano like Campi Flegri or Yellowstone? I do believe that there is a low probability that it may erupt again, or it could be mostly extinct like Mauna Kea. Have you done a video about Mauna Kea's past eruptions and the possible future of it? You did briefly talk about Mauna Kea after an earthquake caused a hole near the summit, but there wasn't much about its past or its future. I have never been to Maui, but I would like to go there someday.
Impossible for the hawaiian volcanoes to have a super eruption. Different type of magma/gasses. No where near as explosive. Also check out his recent super volcano video. It’s a bit of a misnomer
Super eruptions in hawaii that would probably look like mt vesuvius is impossible. The rock hawaii is formed from is extremely heavy and strong and comes out in a liquid phase, like overflowing a cup, rather than it exploding out in violent ashes and flying mini meteors.
Things I want to know about Hawaiian volcanoes: 1. Can a new lava lake ever form over the old one formed in 1957 on the Kilauea Iki trail? 2. When will Mauna Kea erupt again and what should we expect with the telescopes built on the summit? 3. When will Haleakala erupt again?
Yes Impossible to tell for sure but nothing likely in the near future or even our lifetimes Unlikely but not completely impossible that it happens in our lifetime. Can’t really predict eruptions on a timeline. The ebbs and flows of magma into the magma chambers are not constant and fluctuate
@@joecorsaro1381 so the Kilauea Iki trail will pretty much always be safe to hike? Crazy to think it won’t happen again in that spot during our lifetime when it’s so close to the hale’mau’mau crater
@@sco0by_d0ob420 poorly structured response on my behalf. It’s possible a new lava lake would form where Iki trail is during our lifetime. No indication any thing in the area is any time soon but that can always change. Mauna Kea and Haleakala are the much less likely eruptions to occur in our lifetime, with Haleakala being slightly more of a possibility
There's actually evidence of a tsunami at some ridiculous elevation on Molokai, (1500 ft or something like that), due to the southeast flank of the big island sliding off.
Haleakala will almost certainly erupt again. It’s in a much earlier stage of its lifecycle than the west Mauis. Threat at Haleakala is high enough that USGS actively monitors Haleakala
I don't know if I agree; I don't believe this specific volcano is in close enough proximity to the active area of the hot spot for "typical shield volcano" behavior to apply.
When it comes down to it we really don't know for sure a volcano could appear out of nowhere in the middle of Central Indiana we truly don't know exactly how mother nature works the Earth surprises us every day we only speculate that we know what's going on just to make people feel better
If I were you, I wouldn't be planning a visit to "Mount Kokomo" anytime soon. However, Indiana does get earthquakes! The Evansville metro area is located on the Wabash Valley Seismic Zone, and the entire midwestern USA is close to the New Madrid Seismic Zone.
More like we are now better at understanding the life cycle of Hawaiian Shield volcanoes. The connection to the Hawaiian Hotspot is gone for these eruptions, they are related to the once larger island sinking, and thus melting from below. Maui used to be a much larger Island than the big Island of Hawaii for example, the ancestral island is called Maui Nui, and the existing islands of Maui, Lanai, Molokai, and Kahoolawe are all peaks of volcanoes that once were connected by land.
Dead, but maybe not, especially considering that, according to the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program, the East Maui Volcano, AKA Haleakala, erupted less than 300 years ago.
Doesn't have to be. He explained how this happens. If you don't understand it or refuse to believe this can happen, sounds like a you problem. Hawaiian volcanoes can up to a certain point still erupt even if they're not on the hotspot anymore.
Aloha I live on Kauai Hawaii and I've been finding some unusual rock formations that I cannot explain as "natural" and I'm curious if anyone knows of a group I can share photos with? Mahalo
@@danielnaberhaus5337 yes, but not just that. I do find the massive boulders island wide and I find it odd that they are entirely above ground. It's the bluffs that have me scratching my head. The entire face of the bluff is made up of boulders but behind the boulders is nothing but red dirt. There's also what appears to be a layer of mortar underneath and between the boulders. I've found evidence already that Hawaiians used mortar. I've been clearing a massive site in the middle of the jungle and with no other way of describing it I will call it a step pyramid. It's entirely man made and appears to be far more ancient than the mainstream narrative of the islands history.
@@twonumber22 one professor in Canada is baffled by what I've shown him. The university of Hawaii will not hear any of it. They will have to print all new textbooks on the subject.
As far as we know this entire planet could explode at any time we could be from another planet where our ancestors traveled to this planet millions of years ago there would be no trace of this left and we will truly never know
Planets don't just randomly explode. You've been watching to many Superman movies. Two reasons a planet could explode, if the host star goes supernova, or if another planet collides with it.
@@sigisoltau6073 No chance of the sun going supernova, if current understanding of stellar evolution is even close to correct. Conceivably, a sufficiently large rouge planet at a sufficient velocity could collide with the Earth. The probability of this is extremely low, but proabably non-zero.
old black and white drawn-out movie death scene from a truly bad movie in the era. Almost dead but let me get out this long-winded life story of all my crimes to the priest first, while I bleed out in the street because there is no time to get me to the hospital.
The timelines given in these videos are bogus, it does not take that long in nature. Theory, theory, theory that's all it ever is, and theory is just a fancy word for you don't know.