Scans of the seafloor surrounding the Hawaiian Islands using side-looking sonar have revealed numerous giant submarine landslides. Seventeen of these have been identified around the main islands, Kaua'i to Hawai'i, and an additional forty have been found in the Northwest Islands, Kaua'i to Kure.

The landslides have been grouped into two types: slumps and debris avalanches. In the picture above, the pink area is the Kona Slump. The yellow area, a debris avalanche, is known as Alika-2.

These landslides are thought to contribute to the structural development and the eruptions of the volcanoes from which they are formed. It is also thought that volcanic activity, like earthquakes, may trigger the slides.

Scientists believe that the steep cliffs on the north coast of Molokai, the windward cliffs of the Koolau, and the Na Pali coast of Kauai may be, in part, the result of these large slides.

Pictures like that above can be found at the site linked here.

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