The boys were commenting yesterday of Mauna Kea and here’s a nice take on it.

Here’s a video of a bike rider going up it.

Some info:

1.  Mauna Kea, like neighboring Mauna Loa, is a shield volcano, characterized by lava pouring out layer upon layer for millions of years without an explosion. In contrast, a volcano like Mt. St. Helens is known as a composite volcano which violently explodes during eruption. The most recent Mauna Kea eruption was about 3,500 years ago so it’s now considered a dormant volcano, but it will, apparently, erupt again someday.

2.  Mauna Loa, on the other hand, is active and last erupted in 1984. The Hawaiian name mauna kea means “white mountain”, a reference to the fact that it is regularly snow- or frost- capped during the northern hemisphere winter. The mountain including the summit was originally part of the legendary Parker Ranch — the largest privately owned ranch in the U.S. Today, the summit hosts a herd of observatories.

3. The Mauna Kea Observatories [aerial-photos] make up the world’s largest and most sophisticated facility for studying optical, infrared and submillimeter astronomy. Among the billion dollars worth of internationally owned and operated observatories is where we parked and hiked around admiring the incredible scenery. It’s not surprising that astronauts train here practicing lunar landings. With so much invested, scientists have obviously done a good job convincing their governments that the volcano is not going to erupt again anytime soon.

4.  The whole world wants a piece of the action because the summit is above approximately 40% of Earth’s atmosphere and 90% of the water vapor, allowing for exceptionally clear images. Believe me, the clarity is very discernible to the naked eye. The combination of vivid colors, out-of-world scenery and clarity is simply shocking.

5. [From Wiki]:  The peak of Mauna Kea is 13,803 feet (4,207 m) above mean sea level but 33,476 feet (10,203 m) above its base on the floor of the Pacific Ocean.   It is the world’s tallest mountain by this measure, taller than Mount Everest, which is the highest mountain above sea level.

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