The island is often referred to as the Island of Hawaii or Hawaii Island to distinguish it from the state. It is also referred to as The Big Island, due to its size relative to the other islands. In Hawaiian, the island is sometimes called Moku o Keawe. The word keawe has several meanings. One definition, "southern cross", is said to be the name of an ancient chief.[3] Another definition is "the bearer" (ke-a-we).[4]Hawaii County is the local administrative unit.
Hawaii is allegedly named after Hawaiʻiloa, a legendary Polynesian navigator who is said to have discovered the island. Other accounts attribute the name to the legendary realm of Hawaiki, a place from which some Polynesians are said to have originated, the place where they transition to in the afterlife, or the realm of the gods and goddesses. James Cook, the English explorer and navigator who captained the first European expedition to reach the Hawaiian Islands, called it O-Why-hee (from Hawaiian) and the "Sandwich Islands" after his patron, the Earl of Sandwich.[7]
Hawaii was the home island of Paiʻea Kamehameha, later known as Kamehameha the Great. Kamehameha united most of the Hawaiian islands under his rule in 1795, after several years of war, and gave the kingdom and the island chain the name of his native island.[8] In 1822, missionary William Ellis arrived and was one of a party that completed a tour of the island, descriptions of which were later published in his journal.[9]
Geology and geography
Aerial view, 3D computer-generated image
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 5,086 square miles (13,170 km2), of which 4,028 sq mi (10,430 km2) is land and 1,058 sq mi (2,740 km2) (20.8%) is water.[10] The county's land area comprises 62.7 percent of the state's land area. It is the highest percentage by any county in the United States. Delaware's Sussex County comes in second at 48.0 percent, while Rhode Island's Providence County is third at 39.6 percent.
At its greatest dimension, the island is 93 miles (150 km) across. Measured from its sea floor base to its highest peak, Mauna Kea at 10,000 metres (33,000 ft) is the world's tallest mountain, taller than even Mount Everest, since the base of Mount Everest is above sea level.[11]
A view of the Kohala Coast and adjacent volcanoes, taken from the slopes of Kohala Mountains about 6 miles (10 km) northwest of Kawaihae. From left to right: Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa, and Hualalai.
Volcanism
The five shield volcanoesSteam plume as Kīlauea red lava enters the ocean at three Waikupanaha and one Ki lava ocean entries. Some surface lava is seen too. The image was taken on 16 April 2008.
The island of Hawaiʻi is built from five separate shield volcanoes that erupted somewhat sequentially, one overlapping the other. These are (from oldest to youngest):[12]
Kīlauea – active, part of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Geological evidence from exposures of old surfaces on the south and west flanks of Mauna Loa led to the proposal that two ancient volcanic shields (named Ninole and Kulani) were all but buried by the younger Mauna Loa.[13] Geologists now consider these "outcrops" to be part of Mauna Loa.
Based on geochemical (including trace elements) and isotope differences in their eruptive products, Hawaiian volcanoes fall into two families. The differences are believed due to their separate magma systems. Hualālai and Mauna Loa are members of one family, while Kohala, Mauna Kea, and Kilauea are members of the other.[14]
Because Mauna Loa and Kīlauea are active volcanoes, the island is growing. Between January 1983 and September 2002, lava flows added 543 acres (220 ha) to the island. Lava flowing from Kīlauea destroyed several towns, including Kapoho in 1960 and again in 2018, and Kalapana and Kaimū in 1990. In 1987 lava filled in "Queen's Bath", a large, L-shaped, freshwater pool in the Kalapana area.[15] Another 875 acres were added between May and July, 2018 by the 2018 lower Puna eruption.[16][17] Mauna Loa erupted in 2022, 38 years after the prior activity.[18]
Some geologists count seven volcanoes as building the island, including the submarine volcanoes Māhukona and Kamaʻehuakanaloa (formerly Lōʻihi) as parts of the base of the island.[19] Māhukona off the northwest corner of the island eroded below the ocean surface.[20] Approximately 22 miles (35 km) southeast of Hawaii lies the undersea volcano known as Kamaʻehuakanaloa. It is an erupting seamount that has grown to approximately 3,200 feet (980 m) below the surface. Continued activity at current rates from Kamaʻehuakanaloa were forecast to cause it to break the surface ocean in 10,000 to 100,000 years.[21]
The Great Crack is an eight-mile-long (13,000 m), 60-foot-wide (18 m) and 60-foot-deep (18 m) fissure in the island, in the district of Ka'u. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the Great Crack is the result of crustal dilation from magmatic intrusions into the southwest rift zone of Kilauea.[22] While neither the earthquake of 1868 nor that of 1975 caused a measurable change in the Great Crack, lava welled out of its lower 6 miles (10 km) in 1823.[22]
Trails, rock walls, and archaeological sites from as old as the 12th century exist near the Great Crack. In August 2018, the National Park Service purchased nearly 2,000 acres (810 ha) of private land adjacent to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, claiming that the area had important geological features to be studied and preserved.[23]
Punaluʻu Black Sand Beach ParkLaʻaloa Bay, also known as "Magic Sands", located in Kailua-Kona
The Hilina Slump is a 4,760-cubic-mile (19,800 km3) section of the south slope of Kīlauea that is moving away from the island. Between 1990 and 1993, Global Positioning System (GPS) measurements showed a southward displacement of about 4 inches (10 cm) per year.[24] Undersea measurements show a "bench" that has formed a buttress and that this buttress may tend to reduce the likelihood of catastrophic detachment.[25][26]
On 2 April 1868, an earthquake with a magnitude estimated between 7.25 and 7.9 rocked the southeast coast of Hawaii. This was the most destructive earthquake in the Hawaii's recorded history.[27] It triggered a landslide on Mauna Loa, 5 miles (8 km) north of Pahala, killing 31 people. A tsunami claimed 46 more lives. The villages of Punaluʻu, Nīnole, Kawaʻa, Honuʻapo, and Keauhou Landing were severely damaged. The tsunami reportedly rolled over the tops of the coconut trees up to 60 feet (18 m) high, and it reached inland a distance of a quarter of a mile (400 meters) in some places.[28]
On 29 November 1975, a 37-mile-wide (60 km) section of the Hilina Slump dropped 11.5 feet (3.5 m) and slid 26 feet (7.9 m) toward the ocean. This movement caused a 7.2 magnitude earthquake and a 48-foot-high (15 m) tsunami. Oceanfront property was washed off its foundations in Punaluu. Two deaths were reported at Halape, and 19 other people were injured.[29]
The island suffered damage from a tsunami caused by earthquakes in Alaska on 1 April 1946, and in Chile on 23 May 1960. Downtown Hilo was damaged by both tsunamis, with many lives lost. Just north of Hilo, Laupāhoehoe lost 16 schoolchildren and five teachers in the tsunami of 1946.[30]
In March 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake off the east coast of Japan again created a tsunami that caused minor damage in Hawaii. The estimated damage to public buildings was about US$3 million.[31] In the Kona area this tsunami washed a house into Kealakekua Bay, destroyed a yacht club and tour boat offices in Keauhou Bay, caused extensive damage in Kailua Kona, flooded the ground floor of the King Kamehameha Hotel,[32] and permanently closed the Kona Village Resort.[33]
In early May 2018, hundreds of small earthquakes were detected on Kīlauea's East rift zone, leading officials to issue evacuation warnings. On 3 May 2018, the volcano erupted in Puna after a 5.0 earthquake earlier in the day, causing evacuations of Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens subdivisions.[34][35] A seemingly related 5.3 magnitude quake and a subsequent 6.9 magnitude earthquake occurred on 4 May.[36][37]
Volcanic fog
Mobile atmospheric volcanic fog measuring station in Hawaii
Vog (volcanic fog) can envelop the island of Hawaii when Kilauea is active. Since the termination of volcanic activity in September 2018, vog has largely disappeared on the west side of the island.[38] The gas plumes created a blanket of vog that the trade winds mostly deflect toward the Kona coast. Vog can damage the health of plants, humans, and other animals. Most of the aerosols are acidic and of a size where they can remain in the lungs to damage them. Flu-like symptoms and general lethargy are reported, and are especially pronounced in people with respiratory conditions.[39][40][41][42]
Sugarcane was the backbone of the island economy for more than a century. In the mid-20th century, sugarcane plantations began to downsize, and in 1995 the island's last plantation closed.[43]
Most of the island's economy depends on tourism, centered primarily in resort areas on the western coast of the island in the North Kona and South Kohala districts. Sustainable tourism is increasing.[44]
Diversified agriculture is a growth sector. Major crops include macadamia nuts, papaya, flowers, tropical and temperate vegetables, aquaculture, and coffee beans. The island's orchid production is the state's largest.[45] The island is home to one of the United States' largest cattle ranches: Parker Ranch, on 175,000 acres (708 km2) in Waimea.
The island is known for astronomy, with numerous telescopes positioned on the summit of Mauna Kea at the Mauna Kea Observatories, where atmospheric clarity is excellent and little light pollution intrudes.[46] Astronomy has become somewhat controversial, given accusations of mismanagement by the observatory manager, the University of Hawaii. The proposed addition of the Thirty Meter Telescope generated protests that stalled the project and led to the transfer of management responsibility to a Governor-appointed body.[47]
NELHA (Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority), a 675-acre (273 ha) state developed site, is a green economic development ocean science and technology park on the west side of the island. It provides resources and facilities for energy and ocean-related research, education, and commercial activities in an environmentally sound and culturally sensitive manner. Business tenants on this coastal site include microalgae farms, aquaculture, solar technology and marine biotech. Tenants have access to three sets of pipelines delivering deep-sea water from a depth of up to 3,000 feet (910 m), as well as pristine sea surface water and almost constant sunshine. A 2012 study by the University of Hawaiʻi Economic Research Organization reported that the total economic impact of activities at NELHA was $87.7 million and created 583 jobs.[48]
Transportation
Bus in Hilo
Roads
Three routes connect the two major towns, Hilo on the east coast and Kailua-Kona on the west coast:[49]
State highways 19 & 190, the northern route via Waimea
The major commercial ports are Hilo on the east side and Kawaihae on the west side. Cruise ships often stop at Kailua-Kona (90 times in 2017)[51] and Hilo (108 times in 2017).[52]
Green sea turtle lying on an old lava flow; the background shows a Hawaiian temple, known as a "heiau" in the Hawaiian language.Hawaii from space, 26 January 2014[53]
Akaka Falls, one of the tallest waterfalls on the island.
^MacDonald, G. A.; Abbott, A. T. (1970). Volcanoes in the Sea. Honolulu: University of Hawaiʻi Press. ISBN0-87022-495-6. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
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