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Name:  kristin n snyder
Status: N/A
Age: N/A
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: 1999
Question:
What type of volcano is Mauna Kea in Hawaii?

Replies:
A big one. The peak of Mauna Kea is 13,784 feet above sea level. Below the ocean, the volcano continues to a depth of over 15,000 feet. This makes the height of Mauna Kea about 29,000 feet, a greater height difference from base to peak than any other mountain on Earth, including Mount Everest in the Himalayas.

More specifically, Mauna Kea and similar volcanoes are often called "shield volcanoes," because they resemble giant shields lying on the surface of the earth. Shield volcanoes are very broad at the base and have gradual slopes. The reason for this shape is that shield volcanoes do not erupt explosively, but instead produce lava flows, one upon the other, that build up the volcano gradually over a long period of time.

-Grant


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