National Parks
Important Places Protected and Preserved for All of Us
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Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is in the state of Hawaii. It is on the island of Hawaii. The park began in 1961. Before, it was part of Hawaii National Park. In 1961 the part with the volcanoes became a separate park. It has two volcanoes. Both of them are active, which means they give off lava or steam or smoke. One is called Mauna Loa. The other is Kilauea.
Mauna Loa is the largest volcano in the world. It is 13,677 feet above sea level. It covers half of the island. The caldera, or crater, is 3 miles long and 2 miles wide. It erupted in 1984.
Kilauea is the most active volcano in the world. It is 4,090 feeg tall. It has erupted many times. In 1983 and 2022 it erupted. It kept erupting. The lava covered some roads. Now, the park has more land. The new land is made of cooled lava.
The park also has the Kau desert. This area has lava that has cooled. It became rock. The rocks are interesting shapes. It has Mauna Loa Trail. This trail goes up to the Mauna Loa crater. There is a forest made of tree ferns. Bird Park is an area that has many different kinds of birds.
One of the volcanoes is Mauna Loa. It is 13,677 feet high. Lava comes out of Mauna Loa.
One of the volcanoes is Kilauea. It is 4090 feet tall. It is very active. Lava comes out of Kilauea.
Some lava flows into the ocean. When the lava goes into the ocean, it makes steam. The lava makes the water boil, so it makes steam.
People used to go to the Jaggar Museum. The Jaggar Museum had a safe place where you could see the lava and steam. In 2018 it was damaged by lava.
Sometimes the lava flows onto the road. It can destroy roads.
You could hike the Mauna Loa Trail. You could see a forest of tree ferns.
You could walk on lava that has cooled. It is called a lava desert.
You could see a lava tube. A lava tube is a tunnel lava travels through. This is Thurston Lava Tube.
Kealakomo was a village near Kilauea. It was there for a long time. Between 1969 and 1974, Kilauea erupted a lot. Lava covered this village.