William R. Halliday1, Chris H. Okubo2, Stephan Kempe3, Michael and Sherry Garman4, And

RHEOGENIC CAVES AND CAVERNOUS STRUCTURES OF KALAUPAPA PENINSULA, MOLOKAI ISLAND, HAWAII: A MARS ANALOG REVISITED

William R. Halliday1, Chris H. Okubo2, Stephan Kempe3, Michael and Sherry Garman4, and J. Judson Wynne5.

1) Hawaii Speleological Survey of the National Speleological Society and Commission on Volcanic Caves of the International Union of Speleology, 6530 Cornwall Court, Nashville, TN 37205. .

2)U.S. Geological Survey Astrogeology Science Center, 2255 Gemini Road, Flagstaff, AZ USA 86001.

3)Institute for Applied Geosciences, University of Technology Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstrasse 9, 64257 Darmstadt, Germany.

4)Garman Engineering Company, Nashville, Tennessee 37205.

5)SETI Institute, Carl Sagan Center, Mountain View, California 94043 and Colorado Plateau Research Station, Northern Arizona University, Box 5614, Building 56, Suite 50, Flagstaff, Arizona 86011.

Introduction

(Figure 1) The 2004 identification (JPL, 2004) of an unmistakable lava tube on the flank of Olympus Mons (Figure 2) raised hope of discovery of underground refugia of Martian life forms despite collapses evident along much of the length of this example. Further, its analogy to “drive-in” lava tube caves on Earth (Hill, 2000) suggested the possibility of several forms of potential underground shelter for astronauts and eventual colonists (Figure 3). The subsequent discovery of “the Seven Sisters” pit craters on Arsia Mons (Figure 4) raised additional hopes that perhaps one of them might open at depth into a spacious, easily accessible, underground cave system. Reviews of documented terrestrial pit craters (Figures 5-13) with similar parameters (Halliday and Wynne, 2008), however, indicated that field investigation of such features on Mars is beyond the technology of the foreseeable future. While several similar pit craters on private land on Hualalai volcano, Hawaii remain uninvestigated, aerial photography by one of us (W.H.) revealed similar difficulties there. The present communication briefly reviews some of the terrestrial analogs of “the Seven Sisters” documented by Favre (1993) and present Figures 5-8) and by Halliday and Wynne (2008 and present Figures 9-13) together with some of the geological features of the subaerial part of a small basaltic shield which comprises Kalaupapa Peninsula, Molokai Island, Hawaii (Okubo, 2001; Halliday 2001). This small area contains features analogous to Martian features such as “the Seven Sisters” as well as other distinct structures that deserve special attention.

Features and significance of Kalaupapa Peninsula

Celebrated Kalaupapa Peninsula demonstrates a variety of volcanic features unusual in so small an area. Located at the north base of Molokai Island, it is the tongue-shaped summit exposure of a largely submarine basalt shield volcano, with a subaerial surface about 4 km long, 4 km wide at the base, and with a maximum height of about 135 m asl (Figures 14 and 15). Its lavas are 350,000 to 550,000 years bp (Clague et al,1982). Some of these features merit detailed study in their own right. Others merit study as potential analogs of cavernous features on Mars.

1) Kauhako Crater (Figures 14-16) has been described by several authors (e.g., Coombs et al, 1991). Its principal feature is Kauhako Lake (Figures 16-18), which is near the top of a deep, water-filled open vertical volcanic conduit as defined by Skinner (1993). It has been studied by Maciolek (1981), Donachie et al (1999, 2004), Kempe (2000, 2002) and others. Its dimensions and morphology are basically similar to those of “the Seven Sisters” and those of their terrestrial analogs (Halliday and Wynne, 2008). Two of the present authors (M.G. and S.G.) have dived it to a depth of 123 meters (M. Garman, 2000; M. Garman et al, 2000; S. Garman, n.d.) and it has been plumbed to a depth of 248 meters (Maciolek, 1982). Its water is anoxic andsulfide-rich (Kempe, 2000, 2002) and it has been described as analkalinity pump (Kempe and Kazmierczak,1994; Kempe, 2002). To a depth of at least 123 meters, its walls are coated by thick mats and strands of bacteria 15 to 30 cm long. Between these and the pit walls are biogenic calcareous deposits and some iron minerals (Figure 19). Along the lake’s perimeter, stromatolitic crusts exist (Kempe, 2002). It thus has some of the characteristics of Mexico’s water-filled 318-meter Zacaton Pit which has been discussed as a karstic feature adjacent to basalt and rhyolite (e.g., Sahl, 2009).

2)Two lava tube systems (Figures 20 and 21) exist on this volcanic summit (Halliday, 2001). Segments of the Kaupikiawa system are shown on the Okubo geological map (Figure 15). The other system is shorter. Itopens high on a sea cliff about 1 km south of the Kaupikiawa system. Here its entire cross-section is easily observed (Figure 21).

3)A large elevated primary trench with some of the characteristics of a small lunar rill (Coombs et al, 1991) extends downslope from Kauhako Crater in a sinuous pattern near the midline of the peninsula (Figures 14, 15, 22). Coombs et al considered it a collapsed lava tube cave, but it is some orders of magnitude larger than the largest terrestrial lava tube cave on record (Halliday, 2001). In February 2000 a Hawaii Speleological Survey team armed with machetes closely inspected approximately 99% of its walls where breakdown-free. It discovered no trace of a relict lava tube cave of comparable size. Instead, the team found lava levees formed by overflow from the trench, largely concealed by dense vegetation.

4)A complex cavern (Ka Lua o Kahoalii – the Pit of Kahoalii) opens downward from the surface of an old lava lake in the crater (Halliday, 2001). Its course (Figure 23) is just beneath the breakdown-strewn slope of the inner crater above Lake Kauhako. It has been discussed as if it were a lava tube cave (e.g., Coombs et al, 1991), but its pattern is inconsistent with that of any recorded terrestrial lava tube cave and its appearance is consistent with that of a drained portion of the feeder system of the lava pond.

Conclusions

Improving our understanding of cavernous Mars analog features will ultimately improve our ability to model and assess the potential for cave habitability, as well as targeting caves most suitable for establishment of underground astronaut bases on Mars. This process involves selecting the most analogous terrestrial study sites such as the Hawaiian features discussed in this paper. Understanding of lava tubes and collapse structures on Mars will likely benefit from further study of analogous structures on Kalaupapa Peninsula. Continued imaging of Martian shield volcanoes, especially in areas of poor coverage, may yield additional discoveries and potential links to terrestrial examples. Also, further study of Kalaupapa Peninsula may yield insights into other aspects of volcano evolution that are not Mars analogs, but merit additional study in their own right.

References

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Acknowledgments

This is a report of the Hawaii Speleological Survey of the National Speleological Society and several of its members and cooperators participated in this field work. Without the cordial assistance of Jim Martin and Dean Alexander (then Superintendents of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and Kalaupapa National Historical Park, respectively), and of Rick Robinson of Kamehameha Schools (owner of the summit ridges of Hualalai volcano), much of this field work would not have been possible. Jeff Trainer and other staff persons of both national parks notably assisted in the field work. Jack Lockwood and staff persons of the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and of the Kahuku Ranch participated in the investigation of Hapai Mamo Pit. Gerald Favre supplied diagrams and photographs of Wood Valley Pit Crater and the Kau Desert Pit Craters. Carol Vesely supplied the photograph of the Tyrolean traverse of Na One Pit. Suggestions by Laszlo Kesthelyi notably improved the abstract, and Jody Bailey of the Nashville Grotto of the National Speleological Society provided much-needed electronic expertise. We are profoundly grateful to all.