Which US national park is home to active volcanoes Kīlauea and Mauna Loa?

Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park is the U.S. national park home to the active volcanoes Kīlauea and Mauna Loa. It occupies the southeastern part of Hawaiʻi Island, also called the Big Island, and extends from sea level to Mauna Loa’s summit.

Kīlauea is one of the world’s most active volcanoes, while Mauna Loa is the largest shield volcano on Earth by volume. Together they allow scientists to study how volcanic eruptions build the Hawaiian Islands. The park’s landscape includes lava fields, craters, rainforests, desert-like terrain, and a coastline.

The park was created in 1916 as Hawaiʻi National Park. It was later divided to create Haleakalā National Park on Maui, leaving the present Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. The area became an International Biosphere Reserve in 1980 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

Kīlauea and Mauna Loa are not in Yellowstone, although Yellowstone is also famous for volcanism. Mauna Loa’s immense size can be misleading: it is a broad shield volcano with relatively gentle slopes, unlike the steep cone many people imagine when they hear “volcano.”