Penguin Bank facts for kids
Penguin Bank is the name of an ancient volcano that is now completely underwater. It's a type of volcano called a shield volcano, which means it has gentle slopes like a warrior's shield. You can find its remains, covered in coral, just west of the island of Molokaʻi in Hawaii. Even though it's underwater, it's not very deep, as you can see on the map.
Geology of Penguin Bank
Penguin Bank is part of a very long chain of underwater mountains and volcanoes called the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain. This chain stretches across the Pacific Ocean.
Long, long ago, during a time called the Cenozoic Era (which started about 66 million years ago), Penguin Bank was one of seven main volcanoes that formed a huge ancient island. This island was named Maui Nui. The other volcanoes that made up Maui Nui were West Molokaʻi, East Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, West Maui, East Maui, and Kahoʻolawe. We don't know exactly when Penguin Bank last erupted.
Size and Location
Penguin Bank is about 20 miles (32 kilometers) long and 10 miles (16 kilometers) wide. It lies under less than 200 feet (61 meters) of water. This makes it a relatively shallow area compared to the deep ocean around it.
Protecting Penguin Bank
In 2009, there were plans to build wind turbines on Penguin Bank. These turbines would have used the wind to create electricity. However, these plans were stopped.
Penguin Bank is located right in the middle of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. This sanctuary is a special protected area for humpback whales. Because of its location, any building project needed permission from a government agency called the Minerals Management Service (MMS). The MMS would not allow building within marine sanctuaries, which meant the wind turbine project could not go ahead. This decision helped protect the important home of the humpback whales.
