Common Questions and Answers
What does the word Hawaii mean?
Hawaii is the name of the largest of the Hawaiian islands (also known as the Big Island) and is the name of the 50th State in the USA which is a collection of 7 islands Hawai'i, Maui, Lana'i, Moloka'i, Koho'olawe, O'ahu, and Kaua'i. Many believe the name Hawai'i was adapted from the name Hawaiki, the name for a mythical homeland of all Polynesians. Others believe it is a variation of a South Pacific island Raiatea, which was called Havaii at the time of migration.
How were the Hawaiian Islands formed? How many volcanoes are in Hawaii? How many islands are in Hawaii?
The Hawaiian islands are very different land forms from the Mainland USA. Hawaii was formed when a molten 'hot spot' weakened the Earth's crust until it broke open and molten lava started pumping out. That one 'hot spot' stays in the same place as the Pacific Tectonic Plate moves slowly northeast towards Japan and has created all of the Hawaiian Islands. There are actually 132 islands (8 major islands and 124 smaller islands, reefs, atolls and shoals) in the Hawaiian Island Chain that have been created by that one hot spot over hundreds of millions of years. The chain runs 1,600 miles (2,560 kilometers) from the oldest formation, the Kure Atoll in the northwest, to the Big Island of Hawaii in the southeast. Only 7 main islands are considered part of the State of Hawaii: Kauai, Molokai, Lanai, Maui, Koho'olawe, Oahu, and the Big Island of Hawaii. Kauai, the oldest of the seven main islands began forming almost 6 million years ago, and stopped erupting only 4.2 million years ago!
When were each of the Hawaiian Islands created?
Scientists estimate the islands were formed:
Kauai: between 3.8-5.6 million years ago.
Oahu: Waianae between 2.7-3.4 million years ago.
Oahu: Koolau between 2.2-2.5 million years ago.
Molokai: West 1.8 million years ago.
Molokai: East between 1.3-1.5 million years ago.
Maui: West between 1.15-1.3 million years ago.
Maui: Haleakala 0.8 million years ago.
Hawaii: Kohala Mt. less than 1 million years ago.
Hawaii: Pu'u Wa'awa'a 0.4 million years ago.
What is the total length of the coast line for the state of Hawaii?
General Coastline 664 statute miles and this includes lengths of general outline of seacoast
Big Island 266 miles
Kauai 90 miles
Lanai 47 miles
Maui 120 miles
Oahu 112 miles
Kahoolawe 29 miles
Data per the Hawaii County Databook 1995
How high are the volcanoes?
All of the Hawaiian Islands are made from several volcanoes ranging from a few feet above sea level to the tallest volcano in the islands, Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii which stands 13,796 ft above sea level (plus another 18,000 feet below sea level!). Another tall volcano located on the Big Island is Mauna Loa which stands 13,680 ft. Because of erosion (after a million years of rain, wind and waves) some volcano craters are only a hundred feet above sea level. (That's about as tall as a coconut tree) Hanauma Bay had 1/3 of its' volcanic crater fall into the ocean during an earthquake and filled with sea water. Now it is a popular snorkeling spot on Oahu, a marine preserve teeming with sea life. The lowest crater has to be Molokini. A small island south of nearby Maui, Molokini rises a mere 45 ft at its' highest and forms a thin crescent shaped island excellent for snorkeling and diving.
Do volcanoes usually erupt in Hawaii? How often do volcanoes erupt?
There is currently one island that is volcanically active, Hawaii also known as the Big Island. Mauna Loa is an active volcano on the Big Island. Kilauea has been erupting non-stop since 1989, but it isn't shooting magma up in the air all that time as you might imagine. Currently the most visible molten rock flows from Kilauea Caldera at Pu'u o'o vent where most of the magma flows through lava tubes and abruptly meets the ocean creating new land. Within the last decade another vent spewing molten lava was discovered 20 miles South of the Big Island. It's called Loihi Sea Mount and is still under water. Unfortunately none of us will live the 10,000 years to see it become an island.
How hot is the lava in Hawaii?
This is kind of a trick question. Magma is molten rock below the Earth's surface, and lava is molten rock that flows freely on the surface. Since lava is actually melted rock the temperatures are extremely hot and very depending on the geological composition of magma. To give you a general idea, lava that's hot enough to flow is about 2000-5000 degrees Fahrenheit!
Does taking lava really give you bad luck?
You might be tempted to take some lava home from your Hawaiian vacation as prized keepsakes but beware that this will anger 'Pele' the Hawaiian volcano goddess. Pele is probably the most well known of the legendary Hawaiian demigods. She creates and destroys with fire. Pele has a quick temper and takes offenses seriously. There are several traditions concerning Pele, the best known of these is about lava rocks. Since Pele created the islands the lava rock is like her flesh or a piece of her. It's said that misfortune will befall anyone who removes lava rock away from Hawaii. This also includes black sand, which is pulverized lava rock. There is a large display at the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park of lava rocks sent back to Hawaii by visitors who have had bad luck since taking them home. Letters of apology also on display accompanied the rocks begging Pele for forgiveness. If you would like to return lava rock you have taken from any Hawaiian Island you can return it to Pele by mailing it to: Headquarters, Volcanoes National Park, Volcano, HI 96785
How big is Hawaii? How many mountains are there? Are there many beaches?
The state of Hawaii is 6,427 square miles. Only Rhode Island, Delaware and Connecticut are smaller. There are many, many mountains in Hawaii. Volcanoes, which have eroded into lush green mountains created all of Hawaii. Everywhere you can go you can see beautiful waterfalls, peaks, and valleys. The islands have snow capped mountains, deep canyons, lush rainforest, and many miles of beautiful beaches. The Islands are surrounded by water and are subject to wave erosion. Having waves crashing against the shores for thousands of years has created beaches all around the islands.
Why do some beaches in Hawaii have black, green, gray, or red sand?
In Hawaii there are white sand, black sand, gray sand, green sand, and red sand beaches, but not all types of sand are found on each island. The color depends what the sand was created from. In Hawaii the term black sand beach is used only for beaches with a high concentration of grains of black volcanic glass. The black volcanic glass is created by molten lava flows entering the cool ocean causing the glassy rinds to shatter. True black sand beaches are only found in a few locations on the Big Island. There are beaches on the Big Island and the other Hawaiian Islands that appear black in color but they only have a small percent, a small pocket, or trace amounts of black volcanic glass and they are not true black sand beaches. Green sand beaches are created from grains of a semi-precious gem called olivine. White sand beaches are created from bits of shells, calcareous algae, sea urchins, and coral. Gray sand beaches are created from gray basalt. Red sand beaches are created from grains of sand that are high in iron content. When the iron oxidizes it turns red. The beaches range from powdery soft to sharp shards depending on the erosion that occurs in the area.
How far is Hawaii from the USA? What is the time difference in Hawaii?
Hawaii became the 50th state of the United States of America in 1959. It is located about 2,160 miles from California, which would be the closest state on the Mainland USA to Hawaii. Hawaii is about 6,000 miles from Washington, DC. Hawaii is in it's own time zone called Hawaii Standard Time (HST). HST is 3 hours BEHIND Pacific Standard Time and 6 hours BEHIND Eastern Standard Time in the Spring & Summer. Deduct an hour for Daylight Savings during the Fall and Winter.
What is the climate in Hawaii? Does it snow in Hawaii?
Because the Hawaiian Islands have lots of different environments (rainforest, beach, desert) there are lots of different climates. In places like Waikiki, Kailua-Kona, Kihei, and other beach towns it is nice and warm almost all year round. The rain forest region is located up in the mountains where the rain clouds collect after the moisture evaporates. This region is cooler and wetter due to the rain and tree coverage. This is also where you will find lots of waterfalls! The desert regions are very hot and dry and you can even find cactus growing, there is very little rain. On the Big Island fields of lava from past eruptions look like huge parking lots. Not much grows in this area, there are miles and miles of nothing but black lava. This region is very hot and dry. The summit of the taller mountains are very cold with high winds year round. The summits (top) of the tallest mountains in the islands do get snow in the winter. There are three mountains that get snow, Mauna Kea (13,796 ft) and Mauna Loa (13,680 ft) on the Big Island and Mt. Haleakala (10,023 ft) on Maui. Because these mountains are so tall it will snow on these summits and at the same time be sunny and 80 degrees at the beach. Mauna Kea is actually the tallest mountain in the world when measured from the sea floor to the summit.
Is it really hot in Hawaii? What is the average temperature?
It does get hot sometimes but there usually is a nice breeze blowing from the Northeast, called 'the trade winds,' which keeps everyone cool when the sun is hot. Hawaii is located close to the equator so the sun is very strong. When the trade winds don't blow it can get very hot and humid. This doesn't happen very often though. It averages in the high 80's during the day and high 70's during the night in the summer. It averages in the high 70's during the day and low 70's during the night in the winter. It is a very comfortable year round range of 66-88 degrees F (78 degree avg.) We are able to wear shorts all year long, but in the winter we may have to put on pants or a light jacket in the evening.
What is the highest & lowest temperatures recorded in Hawaii?
Highest recorded temperature: 100 degrees in Pahala Hawaii in April 1931
Lowest recorded temperature: 12 degrees on the summit of the volcano Mauna Kea in May 1979
How do rainbows happen, anyway? Can you see rainbows every day in Hawaii?
A rainbow forms when raindrops falling through the air separate white sunlight into a spectrum. It is seen usually in the sky opposite to the sun and also in the spray from waterfalls. When the sunlight enters a raindrop it is refracted, or bent, and reflected from the back surface of the drop in such a way that the viewer sees light appear as a spectrum of colors! The colors can be seen, however, only when the angle of reflection between the sun, the drop of water, and the observer's line of vision is between 40 and 42. We see a lot of double rainbows in Hawaii. In the brightest or primary rainbow, often the only one seen, the colors are arranged with the red outside. Above the perfect bow is a secondary bow, in which the colors are arranged in reverse order; this bow is dimmer, because of a double reflection within the drops. You will often see rainbows while in Hawaii and that also means it does rain: usually light rain in the mountain areas. From Waikiki look skyward for rainbows toward Manoa Valley or downtown Honolulu early in the day. As the sun rises higher, rainbows will appear lower in the sky or even low to the ground. It is probably possible to see a rainbow every day somewhere in the islands. If it is sprinkling and sunny out at the same time that is when a rainbow is visible. Depending on the position of the sun and how much rain is falling the rainbow may appear as a partial rainbow, a full sky rainbow, a really fat rainbow with wide bands of color, and even a double rainbow where two rainbows appear at the same time.
Is the Pacific Ocean cold?
Compared to the Atlantic Ocean the Pacific Ocean is very warm. The average temperature of the waters around the Hawaiian islands is 78 degrees year round. But Hawaii actually has the coldest waters in the Indo-Pacific region. Other waters in the Pacific must be like taking a bath!
Is the ocean really as blue as it appears in the photos on your web site?
YES! The ocean water is blue because of microscopic red algae (plants). The red algae absorb the red/orange color in sunlight, so we see mostly blue. Depending on how deep the ocean is it can appear in many beautiful shades of blue. In the shallow waters yellow-ish sand reflects light to make the ocean appear turquoise green! (Blue + Yellow = Green)
How big are waves in Hawaii? How big was the BIGGEST wave in Hawaii?
Hawaiian waves are measured from the back, so a 6ft wave in California is equivalent to a 3ft wave in Hawaii. The largest waves are in the winter time on the North sides of the islands. During the winter months the waves on the North shores range 4 to 40 feet. During the summer months the North shores range 1 to 3 feet. On the South shores the waves range 3 to 15 feet in the summer and 1-3 feet in the winter. The size of the waves is determined by the way the islands were formed and by storms that occur in the Pacific Ocean. Earthquakes in Japan and Alaska can cause huge Tsunami's (some call them tidal waves) in Hawaii. The energy of the earthquake travels through the ocean and can create waves taller than a 16 story building! (That's 160 feet!) When these occur many people are killed or injured and buildings and homes are destroyed. The last Tsunami that hit Hawaii was in the 1970's. In the wintertime we do get large waves that are generated by storms in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. On the North Shores of the Hawaiian Islands the waves range from 0-40 feet in the winter with occasional 50 foot waves if there is a big storm in the Pacific Ocean. The largest surfed wave on Oahu happened only a few years ago at 55 feet!
Did you ever go surfing naked?
Surfing naked was done prior to 1820's. The native Hawaiians normally didn't wear much for clothing, like Native American Indians. The clothing they wore was made from the bark of a tree and didn't make a good bathing suit. So, when the men surfed they would remove their tree bark clothing and surf naked. Once the Catholic missionaries arrived from Massachusetts they convinced the Hawaiians that being naked was evil, so the practice of surfing naked was stopped. Today, public nudity is illegal, so we do not surf naked.
Do girls surf?
Yes, lots of girls and women surf. Surfing was invented in Hawaii over 200 years ago and people from all around the world have been enjoying it ever since.
Do you see dolphins?
We've seen dolphins from shore several times. They jump and flip around in the air, spinning up out of the water. We have also been swimming with the dolphins at Dolphin Quest lagoon on the Big Island at the Hilton Waikoloa. We fed fish to them, kissed them, and learned a lot of interesting things about them. Two neat things we learned were that their bellies feels like the ridges on a record album and it turns pink when they are happy! There is a bay on the Big Island and Lanai where wild dolphins often go for morning swims. If you encounter wild dolphins do not touch or feed them. You could infect them with harmful germs and they could bite you trying to defend themselves from your aggressive moves. Just swim with your hands to your side and enjoy the moment!