Pele's hair
/ˈpɛleɪz
/noun [mass noun]
Fine threads of volcanic glass, formed when a spray of lava droplets cools rapidly in the air.We slip away, hand-in-hand, down to the boats under the rain of pumice and Pele's hair....
- Pele's hair is gold in color and has a diameter of less than half a millimeter.
- Known locally as Pele's hair (for the Hawaiian volcano goddess Pele) it collects in crevices and behind small rocks in the vicinity of an active flow.
Origin
Mid 19th century: translating Hawaiian lauohu o Pele, Pele being the goddess of volcanoes in Hawaiian mythology.