Re: Kilauea Volcano

On Jun 5, 11:55 am, John Curtis <j...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Halema'uma'u is the site of a lava lake that persisted from
1823 to 1924. The lava lake influenced perceptions
of the composition of Earth's interior. Might have also
inspired Norman Owen into melting rocks.
John Curtis

"It was like gazing at the sun at noonday, except that the glare was
not quite so white. At unequal distances all around the shores of the
lake were nearly white-hot chimneys or hollow drums of lava, four or
five feet high, and up through them were bursting gorgeous sprays of
lava gouts and gem spangles, some white, some red, and some golden - a
ceaseless bombardment, and one that fascinated the eye with its
unapproachable splendor."
-- Mark Twain, 1866

There is a picture of it, with people standing quite close to it
actually, as well as more information and the above quote here:
http://pahoahi.tripod.com/volcano/halema.htm How lucky for them they
weren't there in 1924!

I do look forward to seeing some of this some night (and day) in the
webcam, if Kilauea and Pelee are willing to show off for tourists. For
at least two days now, HVO has reported "winks" in the vent wall's
incandescent glow following small earthquakes, possibly due to rock
falls. It suggests (to this amateur anyway) that the vent is widening
somewhat, perhaps being undermined from below by the magma, which is
still fairly well down. Who knows what will happen next.

Barb
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Yes, Virginia, there can be such a thing as dead stones:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go_(board_game)
.