Snow on Hawaii's tallest peak
Snow on Hawaii’s tallest peak Today’s Image of the Day from NASA Earth Observatory features the two tallest peaks of Hawaii’s Big Island, Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, covered in snow.
According to NASA, Snow on Hawaii’s tallest peaks snow has fallen three times on the highlands of Hawaii in the past three weeks, and has persisted on these two volcanic mountain peaks since January 25.
The Weather Channel reports that with the recent snowfall in Hawaii, Florida is now the only state that has not yet seen snow.Mauna Kea (/ˌmɔːnə ˈkeɪ.ə/ or /ˌmaʊnə ˈkeɪ.ə/, Hawaiian: [ˈmɐwnə ˈkɛjə]) is a dormant volcano on the island of Hawaiʻi. Its peak is 4,207.3 m (13,803 ft) above sea level, making it the highest point in the state of Hawaiʻi. Most of the volcano is underwater, and when measured from its underwater base, Mauna Kea is the tallest mountain in the world, measuring 10,211 m (33,500 ft) in height. It is about a million years old, and has thus passed the most active shield stage of life hundreds of thousands of years ago. In its current post-shield state, its lava is more viscous, resulting in a steeper profile. Late volcanism has also given it a much rougher appearance than its neighboring volcanoes due to construction of cinder cones, decentralization of its rift zones, glaciation on its peak, and weathering by the prevailing trade winds. Mauna Kea last erupted 6,000 to 4,000 years ago and is now considered dormant. The peak is about 38 m (125 ft) higher than Mauna Loa, its more massive neighbor.
Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory
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By Chrissy Sexton, Earth.com Staff Writer
