Barrons AP Environmental Science

(C) Kilauea is a shield volcano that is characterized by basalt lava building
enormous, low-angle, gently sloping cones. The fluid nature of the lava
prevents it from piling in steep mounds. Shield volcanoes occur along the
mid-oceanic ridge, where seafloor spreading is in progress and along
subduction zones related to volcanic arcs. The largest volcanoes on Earth
are shield volcanoes.