Getting There - Aneel's Travelogue

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To the Volcanoes

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Friday, 18 August 2006 9:22pm

Today was the group trip to the volcanoes. It was a little disappointing, since we didn't get to see flowing lava, but it was a good trip anyway. We drove down to the end of Chain of Craters Rd and hiked in a bit to see the steam plume from where the underground lava flow hits the ocean. There were lots of neat lava rock formations. Back up on the main loop road was a nice walk through a lava tube and a bit of rain forest.

Comments

	tinny Tuesday, 22 August 2006 10:13pm
What is a lava tube?

	aneel Tuesday, 22 August 2006 10:21pm
When a river of lava flows, the top tends to cool faster than the rest of the flow because it's exposed to the relatively cool air. It can solidify and form a ceiling over the rest of the flow, which stays liquid. When the lava stops flowing in that direction, it drains out of the channel, leaving a cylindrical empty space behind.