BH250-232c
Title
BH250-232c
Subject
Pele's Tears
Description
Pele's Tears are small, dark, glassy volcanic droplets formed during lava fountaining or violent lava spattering. While Pele’s Hair stretches into fine threads, Pele’s Tears are rounded to tear-shaped droplets. These basaltic fragments form when molten lava is ejected into the air, cools rapidly, and solidifies mid-air. Typically black to dark brown, they are a few millimeters in diameter, have a smooth, glassy surface, and often contain vesicles formed by trapped volcanic gases during rapid quenching
Coverage
Location: Hawaii, USA
Date
2022
Creator
Bereket Haileab
Source
From the rock collection of Bereket Haileab. Sample BH250-232c. Housed at Carleton College in Minnesota.
Contributor
Bereket Haileab
Type
Hand sample
Relation
Collection
Citation
Bereket Haileab, “BH250-232c,” BH250 Mineralogy Teaching Collection, accessed April 24, 2026, https://bereket-haileab.geology.sites.carleton.edu/items/show/284.