Why have the Hawaiian Islands formed?
The Hawaiian Islands are formed by a hotspot beneath the Earth’s surface where magma is forced through the floor of the Pacific Ocean creating volcanic islands. As the Pacific Plate moves away from the hotspot, the volcanoes become dormant and gradually submerge beneath the surface of the ocean.Hawaiian Ridge-Emperor Seamount ChainThe Hawaiian Islands are the most recent addition to a chain of seamounts 6,000 kilometers in length along the Pacific Ocean stretching toward the Aleutian Trench off Alaska’s Aleutian Islands.Stationary HotspotThe hotspot forming the Hawaiian Islands is stationary while the Pacific Plate moves over it. A volcano rises over the hotspot until it moves past the hotspot and grows quiet. A new volcano forms over the hotspot and the process continues.Island of HawaiiThe island of Hawaii is composed of five volcanoes. The largest of these is the still active Mauna Loa, last erupting in 1984. Kilauea has been almost continually erupting since 1983 while Hualalai las
