How the Landscape/ landform was created?
The Hawaiian Islands were formed by volcanic activity. Volcanoes can form in the middle of a tectonic plate, where magma rises up until it erupts on the sea floor this is called a “hot spot.”
The Islands where formed by a hot spot occurring in the middle of the Pacific Plate. While the hot spot is fixed, the plate is moving. So as the plate moved over the hot spot the string of islands that make up the Hawaiian Island chain were formed.
How many Hawaiian Islands are they?
There are 8 main Hawaiian Islands, Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Kahoolawe, Lanai, Molokai, Kauai and Niihau which make up the state of Hawaii. The older Hawaiian islands are the above-sea-level remains of once much larger volcanic mountains which have cooled, eroded and subsided as they have moved northwest with the Pacific Plate to their current location.
Shield Volcanos
Shield volcanoes are big volcanoes that are made almost entirely of fluid lava flows. They have broad sloping sides and is usually surrounded by gently sloping hills in a circular or fan shaped pattern. Shield volcanos look just like a warriors shield as were they get their name “Shield volcanos”.
Hawaiian Volcanoes
The main Hawaiian Islands are the tops of massive underwater shield volcanoes that have formed at the Hawaiian hotspot. The hotspot is currently under the southeast side of the Big Island of Hawaii.
There are three active volcanoes in Hawaii. On Hawaii's Big Island there are the volcanoes Maunaloa and Kilauea. Maunaloa erupted last in 1984 and Kilauea has been erupting continuously since 1983. Loihi is located underwater off the southern coast of Hawaii's Big Island. Erupting since 1996. This