List of lava tubes

Last updated February 19, 2025

A lava tube , or pyroduct,^[1] is a natural conduit formed by flowing lava from a volcanic vent that moves beneath the hardened surface of a lava flow. If lava in the tube empties, it will leave a cave.

Africa

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Unnamed cave along the Kakomeru climbing route of Mt. Nyamulagira ^[2]

Ethiopia

70 m lava tube cave has been recorded southeast of Addis Ababa and a smaller example on K'one Volcano^[2]

Kenya

Chyulu Hills – contains nearly 100 tubes^[2]
Elmenteita Badlands north of Mt. Eburru – several small caves^[2]
- Leviathan Cave – At 12.5 kilometres, it is the longest lava tube in Africa.^[3]
Emuruangogolak Volcano caves^[2]
North Chyulu hills area – 20 caves are known^[2]
- Hells Teeth^[2]
- Kimakia Caves^[2]
- Mathioni^[2]
- Skull Caves^[2]
- Kimakia Cave^[2]
Lake Tillam, near Korosi Volcano – several known lava tubes^[2]
Mount Suswa – around 40 known caves totaling around 11 km^[2]
Menengai Caldera – single vent-like cave^[2]
Nyambeni Mountains near Maua – 2 known caves^[2]

Rwanda

Musanze System – total 5.1 km^[2]
- Ubuvomo bwa Musanze – 4.56 km^[2]
- Ubuvomo bwa Nyrabadogo – 1.5 km^[2]

Tanzania

Mount Kilimanjaro Mawenzi lava tube system (at least 5)^[4]

Uganda

Garama Cave – Kigesi District, is 342 m long^[2]

Asia

China

Wudalianchi National Park and Global Geopark ^[5]
- Laoheishan volcano
  - Fairy Palace Cave^[5]
  - Waterfall Palace Cave^[5]
- East Jiaodebushan volcano
  - Ice Cave^[5]
  - Underground Ice River^[5]
Jingpo Hu National Park and Global Geopark ^[5]
- Weihuting Cave^[5]
- Longyandongtian Cave (Dragon Rock Cave)^[5]
- Shenshui Cave (Driven Water Cave)^[5]
- Gubingdong Cave (Ancient Ice Cave)^[5]
- Jiemei Cave (Sisters Cave)^[5]
- Kanlianmiying Cave (Anti-J Allied Army Secret Camp)^[5]
Leiqiong Global Geopark – More than 30 tubes^[5]
- Seventy Two Cave Lava Tunnel^[5]

Japan

Saudi Arabia

Harrat Khaybar lava field – Umm Jirsan lava tube – 1.5 km long (Pint 2009)

South Korea

Geomunoreum Lava Tube System
- Gimnyeonggul
- Manjanggul – more than 8 kilometers long, located in Jeju Island, is a popular tourism spot.^[6]^[7]

Europe

Iceland

Búri (cave)
Raufarhólshellir
Surtshellir – For a long time, this was the longest known lava tube in the world.^[8]
Víðgelmir

Italy

Grotta del Gelo on Mount Etna
Grotta dei Tre Livelli – lava tube system on three levels at Mount Etna^[9]

Portugal

Azores

Spain

Canary Islands

North America

Canada

Nisga'a Memorial Lava Bed Provincial Park

United States

Ape Cave – Washington (state)
Bandera Volcano Ice Cave – New Mexico
Cheese Cave – Washington (state)
Indian Tunnel lava tube (and more than 250 other examples) in Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, Idaho ^[10]
Derrick Cave – Oregon
El Malpais National Monument, in western New Mexico ^[11]
Hālona Blowhole
Kaumana Cave – Hawaii
Kazumura Cave, Hawaii – Not only the world's most extensive lava tube, but at 65.5 kilometres (40.7 mi), it has the greatest linear extent of any cave known.^[12]
Kuna Caves – Idaho
Lava Beds National Monument – California
Newberry National Volcanic Monument – Oregon
- Arnold Lava Tube System
- Boyd Cave – Oregon
- Horse Lava Tube System
  - Redmond Caves
- Lava River Cave ^[13]
- Lava Top Butte basalt^[14]
- Skeleton Cave
Lava River Cave – Arizona
Mammoth Cave – Utah
Niter Ice Cave – Idaho
Pluto's Cave – California
Skylight Cave – Oregon
Snow Canyon State Park - Utah^[15]
Subway Cave Lava Tubes – Lassen National Forest, California^[16]
Wilson Butte Cave – Idaho

Oceania

Australia

Undara Volcanic National Park – Queensland

Galapagos

Bellavista lava tunnel^[17]

New Zealand

Auckland volcanic field Includes more than 50 lava tubes
- Wiri Lava Cave

Samoa

Alofaaga Blowholes

Extra Terrestrial

References

↑ "Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park – Lava Tubes". National Park Service. 28 April 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Jim W. Simons "Volcanic Caves of East Africa – An Overview " Int. J. Spelenl.. 27 B (1/4), (1998): 11–20
↑ Forti; Galli; Rossi (July 2004). "Minerogenesis of Volcanic Caves of Kenya". International Journal of Speleology. 32: 3–18. doi: 10.5038/1827-806X.32.1.1 . Archived from the original on 2017-04-09. Retrieved 7 Apr 2017.
↑ Clive Ward "Lava Caves of Kilimanjaro. Mawenzi Lava Tubes" Int. J. Speleol., 27 I3 (1/4), (1998): 53.56.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Chris Wood & Haiyan Zhang "Volcanic Centres and Lava Caves in China" Proceedings 14th International Symposium on Vulcanospeleology, 2010 pp. 123–129
↑ Barclay, Jennifer (2012-04-27). "10 Reasons Travelers Can't Keep Away from Jeju Island". CNN Travel. Archived from the original on 2015-12-24. Retrieved 2015-12-23.
↑ "Manjanggul Lava Tube [National Geopark] (만장굴 (제주도 국가지질공원)) : VISITKOREA". Manjanggul Lava Tube [National Geopark] (만장굴 (제주도 국가지질공원)). Retrieved 2023-12-11.
↑ "Surtshellir-Stefánshellir System". Caves of Iceland. Showcaves. Archived from the original on 2012-04-24. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
↑ Guest, J.E; Duncan, A.M.; Stofan, E.R; Anderson, S.W. (2012). "Effect of slope on development of pahoehoe flow fields: Evidence from Mount Etna". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 219–220: 52–62. doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2012.01.006.
↑ "Caves of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, Idaho". National Park Service. 2018-02-08. Retrieved 2021-01-25.
↑ Polyak, Victor J.; Provencio, Paula P. (2020). "The 'hornito-style' lava stalagmites and lava column in Lava Column Cave, El Malpais National Monument" (PDF). New Mexico Geological Society Special Publication. 14: 37–40. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
↑ Gulden, Bob (2011-06-21), World's Longest Lava Tubes, archived from the original on May 15, 2006, retrieved 2011-06-26
↑ Newberry National Volcanic Monument
↑ Donnelly-Nolan, J. M.; Stovall, W. K.; Ramsey, D. W.; Ewert, J. W.; Jensen, R. A. (2011). Hendley II, J. W. (ed.). Newberry Volcano – Central Oregon's Sleeping Giant: USGS Fact Sheet 2011–3145 (PDF). United States Geological Survey.
↑ Snow Canyon State Park. Utah.gov state park website.
↑ Subway Cave, United States Department of Agriculture. Accessed 20 June 2021.
↑ "Lava Tubes of Bellavista on Santa Cruz, the Galápagos". 27 June 2016.

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[NPS_Hawaii-1] "Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park – Lava Tubes". National Park Service. 28 April 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.

[Simons1998-2] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Jim W. Simons "Volcanic Caves of East Africa – An Overview " Int. J. Spelenl.. 27 B (1/4), (1998): 11–20

[3] Forti; Galli; Rossi (July 2004). "Minerogenesis of Volcanic Caves of Kenya". International Journal of Speleology. 32: 3–18. doi: 10.5038/1827-806X.32.1.1 . Archived from the original on 2017-04-09. Retrieved 7 Apr 2017.

[Ward1998-4] Clive Ward "Lava Caves of Kilimanjaro. Mawenzi Lava Tubes" Int. J. Speleol., 27 I3 (1/4), (1998): 53.56.

[Zhang2010-5] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Chris Wood & Haiyan Zhang "Volcanic Centres and Lava Caves in China" Proceedings 14th International Symposium on Vulcanospeleology, 2010 pp. 123–129

[6] Barclay, Jennifer (2012-04-27). "10 Reasons Travelers Can't Keep Away from Jeju Island". CNN Travel. Archived from the original on 2015-12-24. Retrieved 2015-12-23.

[7] "Manjanggul Lava Tube [National Geopark] (만장굴 (제주도 국가지질공원)) : VISITKOREA". Manjanggul Lava Tube [National Geopark] (만장굴 (제주도 국가지질공원)). Retrieved 2023-12-11.

[8] "Surtshellir-Stefánshellir System". Caves of Iceland. Showcaves. Archived from the original on 2012-04-24. Retrieved 2007-08-07.

[Guest_et_al_2012-9] Guest, J.E; Duncan, A.M.; Stofan, E.R; Anderson, S.W. (2012). "Effect of slope on development of pahoehoe flow fields: Evidence from Mount Etna". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 219–220: 52–62. doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2012.01.006.

[CratersOfMoonNPS-10] "Caves of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, Idaho". National Park Service. 2018-02-08. Retrieved 2021-01-25.

[polyak-provencio-2020-11] Polyak, Victor J.; Provencio, Paula P. (2020). "The 'hornito-style' lava stalagmites and lava column in Lava Column Cave, El Malpais National Monument" (PDF). New Mexico Geological Society Special Publication. 14: 37–40. Retrieved 2020-10-24.

[GULDEN-12] Gulden, Bob (2011-06-21), World's Longest Lava Tubes, archived from the original on May 15, 2006, retrieved 2011-06-26

[13] Newberry National Volcanic Monument

[14] Donnelly-Nolan, J. M.; Stovall, W. K.; Ramsey, D. W.; Ewert, J. W.; Jensen, R. A. (2011). Hendley II, J. W. (ed.). Newberry Volcano – Central Oregon's Sleeping Giant: USGS Fact Sheet 2011–3145 (PDF). United States Geological Survey.

[15] Snow Canyon State Park. Utah.gov state park website.

[16] Subway Cave, United States Department of Agriculture. Accessed 20 June 2021.

[17] "Lava Tubes of Bellavista on Santa Cruz, the Galápagos". 27 June 2016.

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