The summit's pit craters are named West Pit, East Pit, and Pele's Pit. Pele's Pit is the youngest of this group and is located at the southern part of the summit. The walls of Pele's Pit stand high and were formed in July 1996 when its predecessor, Pele's Vent, a hydrothermal field near Lōʻihi's summit, collapsed into a large depression. The thick crater walls of Pele's Pit – averaging in width, unusually thick for Hawaiian volcanic craters – suggest its craters have filled with lava multiple times in the past.