The broad shield of Mauna Loa in Hawaii, the largest active volcano on Earth.
Erik Klemetti, taken March 2013. We just passed the 30th anniversary of the last major eruptive period at Hawaii's biggest volcano, Mauna Loa. Since those eruptions in 1984, the volcano has been quiet, letting the continuous activity at Kilauea take the spotlight. However, by no means is Mauna Loa going to be quiet forever and over the past year, there have been increasing signs that the volcano might be preparing to jump back into action. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory noted that Mauna Loa has had 4 earthquake swarms over the past ~15 months that suggest that deep below the summit crater, magma is moving. These swarms are in the same location, on the northwestern flank of the Mauna Loa, as earthquakes that preceded the eruptions in 1984 and they are all occurring at depths of 10-14 ...
