Pele's tears

Assorted shapes of Pele's tears collected a few kilometers downwind from Mauna Ulu from along the Hilina Pali Road on Kilauea Volcano, Hawai'i. U.S. dime for scale in lower right. Credit: J. D. Griggs / U.S. Geological Survey

Small bits of molten lava in fountains can cool quickly and solidify into glass particles shaped like spheres or tear drops, named after Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes. Pele's tears are jet black in color and are often found on one end of a strand of Pele's hair.

Related category

• GEOLOGY AND PLANETARY SCIENCE

Source: U.S. Geological Survey

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