The Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain is a series of volcanoes and seamounts extending about across the Pacific Ocean.[1]
The chain was produced by the movement of the ocean crust over the Hawaiʻi hotspot, an upwelling of hot rock from the Earth's mantle.
As the oceanic crust moves the volcanoes farther away from their source of magma, their eruptions become less frequent and less powerful until they eventually cease to erupt altogether. At that point, erosion of the volcano and subsidence of the seafloor cause the volcano to gradually diminish.
As the volcano sinks and erodes, it first becomes an atoll island and then an atoll. Further subsidence causes the volcano to sink below the sea surface, becoming a seamount. [2] This list documents the most significant volcanoes in the chain, ordered by distance from the hotspot, but there are many others that have yet to be properly studied.
The chain can be divided into three subsections. The first, the main windward Hawaiian islands consist of the eight youngest and easternmost Hawaiian islands. This is the youngest part of the chain and includes volcanoes with ages ranging from 400,000 years to 5.1 million years. The island of Hawaiʻi comprises five volcanoes, of which two (Kilauea and Mauna Loa) are still active. Kamaʻehuakanaloa Seamount (formerly Lōʻihi) continues to grow offshore, and is the only known volcano in the chain in the submarine pre-shield stage.[2]
The second part of the chain is composed of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, collectively referred to as the Leeward isles, the constituents of which are between 7.2 and 27.7 million years old. Erosion has long since overtaken volcanic activity at these islands, and most of them are atolls, atoll islands, and extinct islands. They contain many of the most northerly atolls in the world, including Kure Atoll, the northernmost atoll in the world.
The oldest and most heavily eroded part of the chain are the Emperor seamounts, which are 39 to 85 million years old.[3]
The Emperor and Hawaiian chains are separated by a large L-shaped bend that causes the orientations of the chains to differ by about 60 degrees. This bend was long attributed to a relatively sudden change in the direction of plate motion, but research conducted in 2003 suggests that it was the movement of the hotspot itself that caused the bend.[4], the issue is still under debate.[5]
All of the volcanoes in this part of the chain have long since subsided below sea level, becoming seamounts and guyots (see also: the seamount and guyot stages of Hawaiian volcanoes). Many of the volcanoes are named after former emperors of Japan. The seamount chain extends to the West Pacific, and terminates at the Kuril–Kamchatka Trench, a subduction zone at the border of Russia.[6]
| Name | Island | Last eruption | Coordinates | Age (years) | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kamaʻehuakanaloa Seamount (formerly Lōʻihi) | Seamount | 18.92°N -155.27°W | The seamount is a submarine volcano approximately southeast of Hawaiʻi. It may eventually breach sea level and become the newest Hawaiian island.[7] | |||
| Kīlauea | Big Island | 2021–ongoing (active)[8] | 19.4167°N -172°W | [9] | Kīlauea is considered one of the most active volcanoes on Earth.[10] Kīlauea, was in near-continuous eruption on its East Rift Zone from January 3, 1983, to September 4, 2018, making it the longest-lived rift-zone eruption of the last six centuries.[11] | |
| Mauna Loa | Big Island | [12] | 19.4794°N 155.6028°W | [13] | Largest subaerial volcano on Earth | |
| Hualālai | Big Island | 1800–[14] | 19.6922°N -155.8672°W | Lies on the western edge of the Big Island | ||
| Mauna Kea | Big Island | 19.8206°N -155.4681°W | [15] | World's tallest mountain if below-sea elevation is counted[16] | ||
| Kohala | Big Island | [17] | 20.0861°N -155.7172°W | Oldest volcano that remains part of the island of Hawaiʻi | ||
| Māhukona | Seamount | 20.0167°N -157°W | Submerged, having long since disappeared into the sea[18] | |||
| Haleakalā | Maui | 20.7097°N -156.2533°W | [19] | Forms more than 75% of Maui | ||
| West Maui | Maui | 20.9°N -193°W | [20] | Very eroded shield volcano that makes up the western quarter of Maui | ||
| Kahoʻolawe | Kahoʻolawe | 20.55°N -192°W | [21] | Smallest of the 8 principal Hawaiian islands; uninhabited[22] | ||
| Lānaʻi | Lānaʻi | 20.8333°N -212°W | Sixth-largest island[23] The only town is Lānaʻi City, a small settlement. | |||
| East Molokai | Molokaʻi | 21.1167°N -207°W | The northern half of this volcano suffered a large collapse 1.5 million years ago.[24] Only the southern half remains above the sea today. | |||
| West Molokaʻi | Molokaʻi | 21.15°N -171°W | ||||
| Penguin Bank | Seamount | 20.9167°N -197°W | [25] | The seamount is a submarine volcano, southwest of Molokaʻi. The submarine volcano used to be part of Maui Nui, a prehistoric island made from seven shield volcanoes. | ||
| Koʻolau Range | Oʻahu | [26] | 21.3167°N -203°W | [27] | A fragmented remnant of the eastern or windward shield volcano, which also suffered a large collapse sometime before the Molokaʻi collapse | |
| Waiʻanae Range | Oʻahu | [28] | 21.5°N -167°W | The eroded remains of a shield volcano that comprised the western half of the island | ||
| Kaʻena Ridge | Oʻahu | [29] | 21.7°N -180°W | The eroded remains of a shield volcano west of Waiʻanae that has since subsided below sea level | ||
| Kaʻula | Kaʻula | 21.65°N -192°W | Tiny crescent-shaped barren island; uninhabited except for divers and fishermen[30] | |||
| Niʻihau | Niʻihau | 21.9°N -170°W | [31] | Smallest inhabited island;[32] | ||
| Kauaʻi | Kauaʻi | 22.0833°N -189°W | [33] | Oldest and fourth largest of the main islands, and home to Mount Waialeale, one of the wettest areas on Earth in terms of precipitation[34] | ||
| Name | Type | Coordinates | Age[35] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 22.7°N -163°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Nihoa | Extinct Island | 23.05°N -216°W | Small rocky island which supported a small population around 1000 CE; features over 80 cultural sites, including religious places, agricultural terraces, and burial caves[36] | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 22.9833°N -176°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 23.2333°N -199°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 23.2333°N -219°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 23.2°N -173°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 23.3°N -179°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Necker Island | Extinct Island | 23.5764°N -164.7°W | Small deserted island with Hawaiian religious shrines and artifacts[37] | |
| French Frigate Shoals | Atoll | 23.8689°N -166.286°W | [38] | Largest atoll in the northwestern Hawaiian islands[39] |
| East Brooks Bank | Guyot | 23.9833°N -208°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Central Brooks Bank | Guyot | 24.1167°N -215°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| West Brooks Bank | Guyot | 24.2°N -223°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Saint Rogatien Bank | Guyot | 24.3167°N -175°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Gardner Pinnacles | Atoll Island | 25.0167°N -226°W | Two barren rock outcrops surrounded by a reef[40] | |
| Raita Bank | Guyot | 25.55°N -196°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Maro Reef | Atoll | 25.4167°N -205°W | Largest coral reef of the northwestern Hawaiian islands[41] | |
| Laysan | Atoll Island | 25.7675°N -171.7334°W | Originally named "Kauō" meaning egg, referring to its shape, and home to one of only five natural lakes in all of Hawaiʻi[42] | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 25.3667°N -175°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Northampton Seamount | Guyot | 25.5°N -196°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 25.65°N -228°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Pioneer Tablemount | Guyot | 25.9833°N -197°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Lisianski Island | Atoll Island | 26.0636°N -173.9658°W | A small island surrounded by a huge coral reef nearly the size of Oahu;[43] named after a captain in the Russian navy whose ship ran aground there in 1805[44] | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 26.3°N -206°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Unnamed seamounts | Guyot | 26.9333°N -211°W | pair of guyots at a depth of and below sea level | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 27.15°N -186°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Salmon Bank | Guyot | 26.9333°N -201°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Pearl and Hermes Atoll | Atoll Island | 27.8°N -226°W | A collection of small, sandy islands, with a lagoon and coral reef; named after two whaling ships which were wrecked on the reef in 1822[45] | |
| Unnamed seamount | Guyot | 28.0833°N -230°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Ladd Seamount | Guyot | 28.5292°N -176.6667°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Midway Atoll | Atoll Island | 28.2°N -198°W | Consists of a ring-shaped barrier reef and two large islets; named "Midway" because of its strategic location in the center of the Pacific Ocean, and was the site of a key battle during World War II[46] | |
| Nero Seamount | Guyot | 27.9653°N -177.9639°W | at a depth of below sea level | |
| Kure Atoll | Atoll | 28.4167°N -198°W | Northernmost coral atoll in the world[47] | |
| Name | Type | Summit Depth | Coordinates[48] | Age | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Windward | Guyot | 28.9°N -215°W | ||||
| Academician Berg | Guyot | 28.85°N -230°W | ||||
| West Windward | Guyot | 28.8306°N -179.1306°W | ||||
| Helsley | Guyot | 28.9°N -213°W | Named after Charles Helsley, a researcher at the University of Hawaii. Also named Zapadnaya Seamount. | |||
| East Townsend Cromwell | Seamount | 29.6833°N 199°W | ||||
| Townsend Cromwell | Seamount | 29.7833°N 182°W | Named after Townsend Cromwell, a prominent oceanographer. | |||
| Hancock | Seamount | 30.25°N 228°W | ||||
| De Veuster | Seamount | 30.375°N 177.5667°W | possibly named after Father Damien (born Jozef De Veuster), a Roman Catholic Priest in Hawaii during the late 19th century. | |||
| Colahan | Seamount | 31.25°N 176°W | [49] | ref group="n">The error estimate is given for 2 standard deviations (95% of data contained within this range). --> | ||
| Abbott | Seamount | 31.8°N 192°W | ref group="n"/> --> | |||
| Daikakuji | Guyot | 32.0833°N 190°W | ref group="n"/> --> | Located at the bend in the L-shaped chain of seamounts. Also the name of a Japanese temple | ||
| Kammu | Guyot | 32.1667°N 173°W | Named after Emperor Kammu, former ruler of Japan (781–806) | |||
| Yuryaku | Guyot | 32.67°N 188.2°W | Named after Emperor Yūryaku, former ruler of Japan (~456–479) | |||
| Goshirakawa | Guyot | 32.65°N 205°W | Named after Emperor Go-Shirakawa, former ruler of Japan (1155–1158) | |||
| Gosanjo | Guyot | 32.9°N 205°W | Named after Emperor Go-Sanjō, former ruler of Japan (1068–1073) | |||
| Toba | Guyot | 33.2333°N 210°W | Named after Emperor Toba, former ruler of Japan (1107–1123) | |||
| Genji | Seamount | 33.3333°N 186°W | Named after Hikaru Genji, the protagonist of the classic Japanese work, The Tale of Genji. | |||
| Kimmei | Seamount | 33.6833°N 209°W | ref group="n"/> --> | Named after Emperor Kimmei, former ruler of Japan (539–571) | ||
| Unnamed Seamount | Seamount | 34.95°N 171.5944°W | ||||
| Koko | Guyot | 35.25°N 206°W | ref group="n"/> --> | Named after Emperor Kōkō, former ruler of Japan (884–887) | ||
| Unnamed Guyot | Guyot | 36.7958°N 171.3639°W | ||||
| Ojin | Guyot | 37.97°N 192.8°W | Named after Emperor Ōjin, former ruler of Japan (~270–310) | |||
| Jingu | Guyot | 38.8333°N 186°W | [50] | ref group="n"/> --> | Named after Empress Jingū, former ruler of Japan (~201–269) | |
| Nintoku | Guyot | 41.08°N 204.2°W | Named after Emperor Nintoku, former ruler of Japan (~313–399) | |||
| Ninigi | Seamount | 41.7333°N 182°W | Named after Ninigi-no-Mikoto, a god in Japanese mythology. | |||
| Godaigo | Seamount | 41.85°N 203°W | Named after Emperor Go-Daigo, former ruler of Japan (1318–1339) | |||
| Yomei | Guyot | 42.3°N 194°W | Named after Emperor Yōmei, former ruler of Japan (540–587) | |||
| Showa | Guyot | 42.9833°N 191°W | Named after Hirohito (Emperor Shōwa), former ruler of Japan (1926–1989) | |||
| Soga | Guyot | 43.4°N 228°W | Named after Emperor Saga, former ruler of Japan (809–823) | |||
| Suiko | Seamount | 44.5833°N 190°W | Named after Empress Suiko, former ruler of Japan (592–628) | |||
| Winnebago | Guyot | 48.1667°N 188°W | ||||
| Tenji | Guyot | 48.8333°N 198°W | Named after Emperor Tenji, former ruler of Japan (661–672) | |||
| Detroit | Seamount | 51.4833°N 203°W | Well-documented seamount, second-oldest. Rock from lava flows show that while Detroit Seamount was on the hotspot, activity coming from the volcano continued for the next 18 million years. | |||
| Meiji | Seamount | 53.2°N 194°W | Named after Emperor Meiji, former ruler of Japan (1867–1912); oldest known seamount in the chain |