Hawaiian Islands, Hot Spots, and Plate Movement
Background Information: The Hawaiian Islands were formed by a hot spot under the Pacific Plate. At the hot spot,
heat rising from the mantle melts rock, which becomes magma. The magma rises and melts through the crust, forming volcanoes on
the sea floor. Eventually the volcanoes may build up enough to rise above the sea as islands. This is how the Hawaiian Islands formed.
A chain of progressively older volcanoes formed as the Pacific Plate moved.
Directions: Refer to the map below to answer the questions that follow.
1. Why is the big island of Hawaii the only Hawaiian island with active volcanoes?
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2. What evidence shows that the Pacific Plate once moved in a more northerly direction than it does today?
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3. An underwater volcano, Loihi, is forming on the sea floor just east of Hawaii. What might eventually happen to Loihi? Why?
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4. What will eventually happen to the volcanoes on the big island of Hawaii? Why?
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