The once-awesome ʻAlae crater did not go easily. The Mauna Ulu eruption had just filled the 1440ft-wide and 540ft-deep crater with a lake of molten lava when a rift opened on the crater's floor. Thirteen million cubic yards of lava drained back into the earth in only 30 minutes. The victory was short-lived, however, as Mauna Ulu eventually filled the crater again, leaving nothing but this small pit crater which formed as the lava lake cooled and collapsed inward.