USGS Image of Kilauea Volcano March 2011
Lava shooting as high as tree tops?
That’s what you’re looking at here and what scientists saw the first week of March, 2011 at the Kilauea Volcano in Hawaii.  Â
A new fissure (or crack) in the ground opened up and the lava shot out. The ongoing eruption is going great guns, again. The pictures and videos on the USGS Hawaii Volcano site are simply amazing!   Â
String Of Quakes Off The Oregon Coast  Â
And then there are the quakes. They started around lunch time on Sunday March 6, 2011. Here are the dates and magnitudes of this round:  Â
- magnitude 4.8 – Sunday March 6, 2011
- magnitude 4.9 – Sunday March 6, 2011
- magnitude 3.9 – Sunday March 6, 2011
- magnitude 4.1 – Monday March 7, 2011
- magnitude 5.0 – Monday March 7, 2011
- magnitude 4.4 – Monday March 7, 2011
- magnitude 4.6 – Monday March 7, 2011
These happened about 200-300 miles offshore from places like Newport, Oregon, Yachats and the world famous Bandon Dunes.  Â
The site of the quakes is a popular spot for seismic swarms called the Blanco Fracture Zone.Â
Most geologists are unsure about the impact these quakes are having on the Cascadia Subduction Zone which is a giant underwater fault as close as 75 miles offshore to the Oregon & Washington Coasts. Someday, scientists believe that fault will create a magnitude 8.0 or even 9.0 quake. Again.
This is all linked to the Ring Of Fire. The perimeter of an area known for earthquakes, like The New Zealand Quake of 2011;  volcanoes like Mount St. Helens  and constant surprises from the earth.
With more to come, I’m sure!
Is Medford, Oregon within the Ring of Fire Region Reaching 200 – 300 miles offshore?
Jan–it sure is. All the states that border the Pacific Ocean are part of that ring of fire. So, Medford’s on the list.
Thanks for your question and have a great weekend!
Hawaii is not technically part of the Ring of Fire. The Ring of Fire refers to the edges of the Pacific Plate (and some smaller microplates) that are subducting underneath less dense plates and the line of volcanoes that form because of that subduction. Hawaii is in the middle of the Pacific Plate, far from the subduction. The Hawaiian volcanoes are the result of a hot spot, a stationary mantle plume that has no relation to plate tectonics.
Chris–thanks for your post. I did get a little too clever with the title on this one. Thanks for the reminder and for taking time to stop by the blog! Bruce