By Manny villa On the island of Hawaii lies the volcano Mauna Loa. Mauna Loa means “Long Mountain,'' and its name is self-explanatory. The volcano extends about 75 miles from the southern tip of the Island of Hawaii across the volcano's summit to the eastern coastline near Hilo. The volcano stands at 13,681 feet above sea level. Mauna Loa is the largest volcano on the planet; so, if it erupted it would be detrimental to the Hawaiian Islands and the people inhabiting them. Mauna Loa last erupted in April of 1984. This eruption was a significant event in Mauna Loa's history. As of November 9, 2022, there have been reports of 30 small (below M3.0) earthquakes 2–3 miles below the Mokuʻāweoweo Caldera and 4–5 miles beneath the upper-elevation northwest area of Mauna Loa. Concentrations of elements such as sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon dioxide are remaining stable at the summit.
The Mauna Loa summit is closed to visitors at the moment due to this seismic activity. However, the USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) is closely monitoring it and claims that it is not erupting. The seismic unrest of Mauna Loa began in September with increased earthquake rates below Mauna Loa summit going from 10–20 per day to 40–50 per day. HVO (Hawaiian Volcano Observatory) thinks that this unrest is most likely due to renewed magma 2–5 miles beneath Mauna Loa’s summit that is expanding the volcano's internal magma reservoir system. This expansion is likely causing the earthquakes. At the moment there is an advisory warning, and there are no observations that say an eruption will happen. But it is still a possibility.
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