lava tube

Thurston (Nahuku) lava tube near summit caldera of Kilauea Volcano in Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. Credit: Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

A natural conduit through which lava travels beneath the surface of a lava flow. Tubes form by the crusting over of lava channels and pahoehoe flows. A broad lava-flow field often consists of a main lava tube and a series of smaller tubes that supply lava to the front of one or more separate flows. When the supply of lava stops at the end of an eruption or lava is diverted elsewhere, lava in the tube system drains downslope and leaves partially empty conduits beneath the ground. Such drained tubes commonly exhibit "high-lava" marks on their walls, generally flat floors, and many lava stalactites that hang from the roof. Lava can also erode downward, deepening the tube and leaving empty space above the flowing lava.

Lava tubes can be as small as about a meter (3 ft) across or as large as a railway tunnel.

Related category

• GEOLOGY AND PLANETARY SCIENCE

Source: U.S. Geological Survey

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