The windward side of the Big Island (Hawaii) is a place lush and strange. Dangerous fogs rise from huge cracks in the ground. The only road that goes anywhere is called Highway 11 and it sports signs thanking its volunteer cleaners such as the Raëlists, a religion that believes that UFOs delivered genetic engineers to create intelligent life on earth. The Big Island adds about 40 acres a year, thanks to the volcano stewing in these photos.

This slide shows Mount St. Helens on May 17, 1980, one day before the devastating eruption. The view is from Johnston Ridge, six miles (10 kilometers) northwest of the volcano. (May 17, 1980, by Harry Glicken, USGS/CVO)

This cinder cone (Pu`u ka Pele) was erupted low on the southeast flank of Mauna Kea Volcano. The cone is 95 m in height, and the diameter of the crater at the top is 400 m. Hualalai Volcano in background.