Mauna Loa is the main, currently active shield volcano of the Hawaii volcano park region, and the islands as a whole. As a 2009 press release from a U.S.G.S. geologist stated "Mauna Loa will erupt again, and there's a good chance that it will be during your lifetime." Mauna Loa's main crater is called Mokuaweoweo Caldera, and sits majestically at over 13,600 feet above sea level. Kilauea Crater (photo to the right), on Mauna Loa's flank, currently is the most active volcano.

The twin peak mountains of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea are arguably the largest mountain structures on earth. This is because in addition to their 13,600+ feet above sea level, the mountains also continue to grade down to the sea floor at about the same slope (through about 16,400 vertical feet of water). Adding the two numbers together, one gets a mountain structure just over 31,000 feet. However, there is even more of the mountain structure, in that, the huge weight of the mountains (they are very wide and long in addition to the height), has caused a serious bending down in the earth's crust immediately below them. This depression of the ocean floor is over 26,000 feet! So ... the entire mountain shape (picture it as an inverted "V") is over 56,000 feet tall. The only mountain structure we know of that is larger is literally out of this world ... on Mars!

Above: Map of lower half of Hawaii Volcano park area hiking trails from an NPS trailhead map.