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Geology News
Hawaii Current Events

Here’s your chance to participate in a professionally planned and guided trip sponsored by the Geological Society of America’s GeoVentures Program. The trip is for GSA student members on July 30 through August 8, 2010. Learn about plate tectonics, volcanoes and more.

NOAA’s Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has a SEVERE widespread warning, watch and advisory in effect in response to the 8.8M Chile earthquake. Visit their website for specific information for various areas.

The Pacific Tsunami Center has issued the following warning for the State of Hawaii in response to the 8.8 M earthquake that occurred this morning in Chile.

“A TSUNAMI HAS BEEN GENERATED THAT COULD CAUSE DAMAGE ALONG COASTLINES OF ALL ISLANDS IN THE STATE OF HAWAII. URGENT ACTION SHOULD BE TAKEN TO PROTECT LIVES AND PROPERTY.

A TSUNAMI IS A SERIES OF LONG OCEAN WAVES. EACH INDIVIDUAL WAVE CREST CAN LAST 5 TO 15 MINUTES OR MORE AND EXTENSIVELY FLOOD COASTAL AREAS. THE DANGER CAN CONTINUE FOR MANY HOURS AFTER THE INITIAL WAVE AS SUBSEQUENT WAVES ARRIVE. TSUNAMI WAVE HEIGHTS CANNOT BE PREDICTED AND THE FIRST WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST. TSUNAMI WAVES EFFICIENTLY WRAP AROUND ISLANDS. ALL SHORES ARE AT RISK NO MATTER WHICH DIRECTION THEY FACE. THE TROUGH OF A TSUNAMI WAVE MAY TEMPORARILY EXPOSE THE SEAFLOOR BUT THE AREA WILL QUICKLY FLOOD AGAIN. EXTREMELY STRONG AND UNUSUAL NEARSHORE CURRENTS CAN ACCOMPANY A TSUNAMI. DEBRIS PICKED UP AND CARRIED BY A TSUNAMI AMPLIFIES ITS DESTRUCTIVE POWER. SIMULTANEOUS HIGH TIDES OR HIGH SURF CAN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE THE TSUNAMI HAZARD.”

NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day shows a colored lunar fog bow over a crater on Haleakala Volcano, Hawaii. A fog bow is similar to a rainbow, but is created by the moon’s light shining through fog; they are usually white. The photo was taken on a night with Mars near opposition, so the planet shines bright orange in the sky.

“On January 13th, Pu‘u O‘o had begun a period of inflation. During inflation, the volcano’s surface rises slightly, likely the result of changes in the shallow magma pool beneath Kilauea. Periods of inflation are associated with increased volcanic activity.” Quoted from Earth Observatory.

If you teach geology at a college or university, you can spend a week at Kilauea this summer learning about volcanoes and how you can incorporate on-line monitoring data such as GPS, tilt, gravity, seismic amplitude time series, kinematic GPS campaign measurements, and webcam imagery into your teaching.

A group of scientists in Hawaii have spent the past two years working on the PLUME (Plume-Lithosphere Undersea Melt Experiment) project to research the islands’ creation. Seismic images have provided some interesting clues for solving the mystery of the Hawaiian hot spot.

An article in the New York Times explores some of the high-resolution seismic imaging being done on the seafloor off Hawaii in an attempt to determine if the islands have been formed as a result of a mantle plume.

The books in the Roadside Geology series will help you learn about the geology of your favorite state. These books are great to take on a trip but they work even better if you use them in advance to plan your trip wisely.

NASA’s Earth Observatory has released a satellite image of lava flows in Kilauea Volcano’s East Rift Zone. The image shows many generations of flows and the trace of craters that mark the center of the rift zone.

Insurance companies providing homeowners coverage in Hawaii have used USGS maps to set their rates for a long time. Now some companies are modifying rates or dropping coverage and homeowners want to know if the lava flow hazard maps – which were made 35 years ago – still represent the hazard accurately.

Petroglyphs, sometimes known as “rock art,” are images cut into or scribed onto a stone surface by people. They are often produced as a form or art or communication. This photo gallery features petroglyphs from worldwide locations including: Arizona, British Columbia, California, Chile, Hawaii, India, Mexico, Namibia, Nevada, New Mexico, Norway, Ontario, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Utah, Virgin Islands, Washington.

Getting insurance coverage is not easy or cheap if you live on an active volcano and want to be reimbursed for losses if your home is overrun by lava. In areas where lava flows are possible, the land is categorized into zones with Zone 1 being the most likely to be overrun by lava. Some companies do not offer insurance to homes in that high probability area.

Article: Homeowners Insurance Does Not Cover Most Natural Hazards

Jessica Ball has authored an article on the types of volcanic eruptions. It has descriptions and photos of Hawaiian, Strombolian, Vulcanian, Plinian, Surtseyan and lava dome eruptions. Check it out!

The Integrated Ocean Drilling Program is working on a ultradeep drilling systems that they believe will enable them to have a much better chance of drilling a hole to the mantle.

Hurricane Felicia is now a Category 4 storm moving west in the Pacific towards Hawaii. It is expected to slowly decline in strength over the next couple of days as it moves over cooler waters on its way to Hawaii.

Since the Kilauea Volcano began erupting in 2008, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has been collecting samples of tephra. The USGS has released a report that details the findings.

Stormwater runoff and sewage contaminate many US beaches. A study done by the Natural Resources Defense Council sampled, tested and rated 200 of the most popular beaches in the United States – both ocean and freshwater beaches were included in the study. Some of them had consistently high water quality and some had consistently low. You can view the report and a listing of the beaches on their website.

A collection of petroglyph photos from Arizona, British Columbia, California, Chile, Hawaii, India, Mexico, Namibia, Nevada, New Mexico, Norway, Ontario, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Utah, Virgin Islands, Washington.

Raven Maps are the most beautiful state wall maps that I have ever seen. They show the elevation and relief of a complete state through a skillful use of vibrant colors and topographic shading. Maps are available for individual states, the Conterminous United States, North America, Mexico and the world.

Learn about the geology of your favorite state as seen along the highway. This series of books by Mountain Press are filled with maps, photos, park locations and detailed descriptions. Get one before your next trip.

A video on the USGS website provides a rare view of active lava churning within Kilauea Volcano’s summit vent located in Halema’uma’u Crater.

The-Vug.com has a comprehensive listing of mineral and lapidary clubs from across the United States. It could be the most complete and up-to-date listing on the web. Included are hundreds of clubs and organizations located in all 50 states.

How did the Hawaii-Emperor seamount chain form? This article discusses how shifting plates and hotspots created the curving shape of the seamount chain.

Project Niu is a science curriculum that will help students learn about ocean currents and remote monitoring. Three “message in a bottle” drifters were released from Honolulu on January 30. They are now being tracked by satellite and their paths recorded on a Google map.