Eight facts about Hawaii's Kilauea volcano By Washington Post, adapted by Newsela staff on 05.11.18 Word Count 661 Level 820L Image 1. In this handout photo provided by the U.S. Geological Survey, a column of robust, reddish-brown ash plume occurred after a magnitude 6.9 South Flank following the eruption of Hawaii's Kilauea volcano on May 4, 2018, in the Leilani Estates subdivision near Pahoa, Hawaii. The governor of Hawaii has declared a local state of emergency near the Mount Kilauea volcano after it erupted following a 5.0-magnitude earthquake, forcing the evacuation of nearly 1,700 residents. Photo by U.S. Geological Survey via Getty Images. Kilauea is a volcano on Hawaii's Big Island. It continued to erupt this week, shooting lava hundreds of feet into the air and burning homes to the ground. As of Tuesday, at least 26 homes had been destroyed. Fourteen fissure vents were open in the area. These vents are tears in the earth where lava erupts. Some of the lava was shooting 330 feet into the air. That is higher than the tip of the Statue of Liberty's torch. Even more outbreaks are expected in the coming days. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 1
This outpouring of lava may seem sudden and unpredictable. In fact, the volcano has been threatening to erupt for weeks. Kilauea has a history of burning Hawaii's forests to the ground. Kilauea Has Been Erupting Continuously Since 1983 Kilauea only makes the news every once in a while. But this volcano has been actively erupting along its East Rift Zone for more than 30 years. Volcanoes like Kilauea have rift zones. These are areas where the volcano is splitting apart. Sometimes the activity in the rift zone is mild. Other times it forces people to flee their homes. Kilauea's main crater has a lake of lava that sometimes rises to the surface. It usually gets a lot of attention. The National Park visitor center and hotel are on the rim of the crater. But a smaller cinder cone to the east is where all of the recent action is. This cone is known as PuuO`o. It formed at the beginning of the 1983 eruption, although the activity has since moved away from the cinder cone along the East Rift Zone. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 2
It Has More Than Two Dozen Craters The stereotypical volcano is tall with a clear peak and a crater on top. Kilauea looks much different. It is relatively short and has several craters that mark its history of eruptions. The Kilauea crater is the main crater, but there are more than 10 other craters on the volcano as well. It Is Probably The World's Most Active Volcano It's difficult to measure the "world's most active volcano." But scientists don't seem to have a problem ranking Kilauea at the top. The volcano's longest period of inactivity was just 18 years, between 1934 and 1952. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Is One Of The Earliest Established The National Park Service was established in 1916, and Volcanoes National Park was created just a few weeks earlier. It was the country's 15th national park. Those that came before it include famous parks such as Yellowstone and Yosemite. There Was Once A Golf Course On The Volcano Kilauea was once home to a golf course. The old clubhouse is still standing, just east of the visitor center, with a couple of rooms that golfers would stay in overnight. The last hole was the volcanic crater. People Used To Lounge Around On The Crater Rim Chilling on the edge of a famously active volcano? Sulfur dioxide hanging heavy in the air? For a few brave souls, this was no big deal. To be fair, they didn't know much about volcanoes back then. If you tried to do this now, you'd be kicked out of the park and fined. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 3
Kilauea Is Home To Pele, Goddess Of The Volcano The goddess of the volcano is Pelehonuamea, or Pele. She is also known as "she who shapes the sacred land." In Hawaiian culture, Pele is the goddess of fire and volcanoes and swallows the Big Island when she is upset. She has a wicked temper and lives in the Halema'uma'u crater. Kilauea's Sister Volcano, Mauna Kea, Is Taller Than Mount Everest Mauna Kea's summit is about 14,000 feet above sea level. But from its base on the ocean floor, the mountain is even taller. It rises 33,500 feet, making it nearly a mile taller than Mount Everest. This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 4
Quiz 1 Which detail BEST helps the reader understand that Kilauea is unlike most volcanoes? (A) As of Tuesday, at least 26 homes had been destroyed. Fourteen fissure vents were open in the area. These vents are tears in the earth where lava erupts. Kilauea's main crater has a lake of lava that sometimes rises to the surface. It usually gets a lot of attention. The National Park visitor center and hotel are on the rim of the crater. The stereotypical volcano is tall with a clear peak and a crater on top. Kilauea looks much different. It is relatively short and has several craters that mark its history of eruptions. (D) But from its base on the ocean floor, the mountain is even taller. It rises 33,500 feet, making it nearly a mile taller than Mount Everest. 2 Read the introduction [paragraphs 1-4]. Which sentence from the section shows WHY Kilauea s recent eruption was somewhat expected? (A) (D) Fourteen fissure vents were open in the area. Some of the lava was shooting 330 feet into the air. This outpouring of lava may seem sudden and unpredictable. In fact, the volcano has been threatening to erupt for weeks. 3 If this article were organized using sequence of events structure, which section would come FIRST? (A) "Kilauea Has Been Erupting Continuously Since 1983" (D) "It's Probably The World's Most Active Volcano" "Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Is One Of The Earliest Established" "Kilauea's Sister Volcano, Mauna Kea, Is Taller Than Mount Everest" This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 5
4 Read the paragraph from the section "Kilauea Has Been Erupting Continuously Since 1983." Kilauea only makes the news every once in a while. But this volcano has been actively erupting along its East Rift Zone for more than 30 years. Volcanoes like Kilauea have rift zones. These are areas where the volcano is splitting apart. Sometimes the activity in the rift zone is mild. Other times it forces people to flee their homes. Which answer choice BEST describes the structure of the paragraph? (A) (D) cause and effect problem and solution chronological order question and answer This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 6