The last island I visited was Hawai’i (also known as the Big Island). Though I had originally intended to stay put on O’ahu for my last two days, a NSREC invited talk by Dr. Rolf-Peter Kudritzki, the Director for the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii, changed my mind. I decided I couldn’t come to Hawai’i without seeing the Mauna Kea Observatories. These observatories are some of the highest and largest in the world. Mauna Kea (in addition to Haleakala on Maui) are uniquely suited to view the farthest reaches of the universe because they sit above the inversion layer (the inversion layer basically keep pollutants at ground level and prevents them from rising and “muddying” the air). Consider this: our universe is estimated to be about 13.8 billion years old; these telescopes (the Keck Observatory and the Subaru Telescope, in particular) have seen objects that are 13.5 billion light-years away! That basically means we’re seeing how things were when the universe was a toddler. Phenomenal!

In addition to the science and telescopes on the island, there are tons of natural things to see. Mauna Kea is actually the tallest mountain in the world. You’re probably thinking, “Wait, what about Everest?”. Everest is the highest peak in the world (29,029′), but measuring from base to summit, Mauna Kea easily beats it at over 33,000′. With Mauna Kea, though, 20,000′ of the mountain is submerged. Hawai’i, being the youngest island, also boasts volcanos and black sand beaches. It was pretty sweet to walk on land that was literally 2-3 years old. My trip to Volcano National Park was great (though rushed), but unfortunately the Hawaiian Volcano Goddess, Pele, didn’t bring the lava to where I could walk up to it.

I’d love to go back to Hawai’i, I hear the snorkeling is amazing (I hear you can snorkel with a school of stingrays), there are tons of hidden beaches to visit, and I’d still like to get up-close-and-personal with some lava.