GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Hawaii (Hawaiian: Hawai’i) became the 50th U.S. state on August 21, 1959. Hawaii is a group of volcanic islands in the central Pacific Ocean.

Detailed explanation-2: -The Hawaiian Islands were formed by volcanic activity. Each island or submerged seamount in the chain is successively older toward the northwest. Near Hawaii, the age progression from island to island can be used to calculate the motion of the Pacific Oceanic plate toward the northwest.

Detailed explanation-3: -Hawaiʻi’s main volcanoes are “shield” volcanoes, which produce lava flows that form gently sloping, shield-like mountains. A good example is Maunaloa, the most massive mountain on earth, deceptively covering half of Hawaiʻi Island.

Detailed explanation-4: -Volcano Watch-Island of Hawaii sits at the end of a long, old chain of 125 volcanoes. The Hawaiian Islands form the young end of a chain of more than 125 volcanoes that stretch over 3, 720 miles across the north Pacific Ocean.

Detailed explanation-5: -1898: Hawaii annexed as a United States territory. 1959: Alaska and Hawaii admitted, respectively, as the 49th and 50th states of the Union.