Week 5: Volcanoes in the Land of Fire and Ice

     Iceland is well known for the amount of volcanic activity that this island experiences. Iceland itself is the product of volcanism as it is situated right on top of the Mid Atlantic Ridge.  Volcanic activity actually creates the beauty of this land which is like no other. There are currently 32  (click here to see map)  active volcanoes in Iceland and volcanic tourism is a booming business here! You can book a helicopter tour, travel with a guided group tour, or even tour a volcano yourself, although the latter is not recommended. 

     Eruptions are very common here and most of them take place in remote areas of the highlands, or even under the very dense ice of glaciers. The most recent eruption occurred in August of 2022 when the Fagradalsfjall volcano erupted on the Reykjanes peninsula which is very near the only international airport in this country. The rift zone of the eruption was over 300 meters long with a steady flow of 20-50 square meters of lava every second when it started, according to the Icelandic Meteorological Office. There had been significant tectonic activity in the weeks leading up to this eruption and some of these temblors measured up to 5.2 on the magnitude scale.    

 

 

     Fagradalsfjall was an effusive, not eruptive, volcano which means that lava oozed out rather than exploding with rock, fire, and ash.  This made for some amazing pictures and many tourists flocked to see this amazing spectacle. Here is a short drone video of that eruption. (click here to see drone video)

     Not all volcanic activity on this island nation is harmless though.  In 2010 the Eyajfjallajokull eruption disrupted air traffic all over Europe due to the dense ash it produced. This was a reminder of the 1783 Lakagigr eruption which caused widespread crop failure and famine in Europe because of the dense ash plume it produced. Pictured below is a photo of one of the craters left behind from this destructive eruption. 

    

In an area so volatile with volcanic activity it is crucial to monitor and plan what to do in the event of an eruption and the government of Iceland has many measures in place for this purpose. I found this information regarding the subject on the internet. 

"Volcanic monitoring and response

Networks of seismometers and GPS stations monitor volcanic regions around Iceland. These are mainly operated by the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO), providing real-time data (seismic), and same-day updates on the status of deformation at selected volcanoes (the GPS-station network). A network of real-time gauging stations in glacial rivers monitor discharge and geothermal signals in the rivers. These networks are publicly accessible on the web-page of IMO (https://vedur.is). The IMO also has C- and X-band radars to track eruption plumes. Air quality and gas concentrations are monitored by the Environment Agency of Iceland. During unrest and volcanic activity, response is coordinated by the Civil Protection Department of the Icelandic Police Commissioner. During volcanic unrest and activity, expertise is sought widely and active collaboration on monitoring and assessment exists between the IMO and the Nordic Volcanological Center at the Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Iceland. An informal Science Advisory Board of the Civil Protection Department holds frequent meetings during unrest, over the last two years exclusively as online meetings."   Source: https://www.consorsegurosdigital.com/

Sources:

Iceland's Volcanoes: The Complete Guide:

https://guidetoiceland.is

Drone Footage of Fagradalsfjall eruption:

https://youtu.be/ubHRA2x8Hx8

Icelandic Meteorological Office: 

https://en.vedur.is/

Consorseguros Vista Digital:

https://www.consorsegurosdigital.com/

Catalog of Icelandic Volcanoes:

https://icelandicvolcanos.is/#

Week 4: Tsunami

 In Iceland, the tsunami hazard is classified as low according to the information that is currently available. This means that there is slightly more than a 2% chance of a potentially-damaging tsunami occurring in the next 50 years. Based on this information, the impact of tsunami may be considered for any activities located near the coast.

Even though there is a low risk of Tsunami, Iceland has experienced something similar.  Mini-Tsunamis caused by glacial calving are an interesting phenomenon  and are a  fairly common occurrence, but they do not cause damage or injure people because they usually happen in areas that people do not live in. Here is a quick clip of some tourists running from such an event.

Watch: Tourists flee large wave after Icelandic glacier collapse

Climate change impact: The areas at risk of tsunami will increase as global mean sea level rises. According to the IPCC (2013), global mean sea level rise depends on a variety of factors, and estimates for 2100 range from ~20 cm to nearly 1 m. However, regional changes in sea level are difficult to predict. 

Iceland’s Meteorological Office (IMO) has an early warning system and there is public outreach to inform the public as to what they should do to stay safe in the unlikely event that there is a tsunami.   I also found these instructions on Ready.gov

Survive DURING

• If there is an earthquake and you are in a tsunami area, protect yourself from the earthquake first. Drop, Cover, and Hold On. Drop to your hands and knees. Cover your head and neck with your arms. Hold on to any sturdy furniture until the shaking stops. Crawl only if you can reach a better cover, but do not go through an area with more debris.

• When the shaking stops, if there are natural signs or official warnings of a tsunami, move immediately to a safe place as high and as far inland as possible. Listen to the authorities, but do not wait for tsunami warnings and evacuation orders.

• If you are outside of the tsunami hazard zone and receive a warning, stay where you are unless officials tell you otherwise.

• Leave immediately if you are told to do so. Evacuation routes often are marked by a wave with an arrow in the direction of higher ground.

• If you are in the water, then grab onto something that floats, such as a raft or tree trunk.

• If you are in a boat, face the direction of the waves and head out to sea. If you are in a harbor, go inland.

Sources: 

Think Hazard:

https://thinkhazard.org/

YouTube Watch: Tourists flee large wave after Icelandic glacier collapse

 https://www.euronews.com/

Government of Iceland:

https://www.government.is/

https://www.ready.gov/tsunamis

Week 3 Earthquakes: There's a "whole lot of shakin' goin' on" in Iceland!

 

Although Iceland experiences up to 500 earthquakes each week, they are typically not big

enough to be noticed by people, or  they occur far from populated areas. 

Large earthquakes are more rare but they can occur due to the fact that Iceland is

situated right on top of the Mid-Atlantic ridge, where the North American

and Eurasian plates meet at this divergent boundary.

There are two main types of earthquakes in Iceland, some of them are 

caused by volcanic activity and the others are caused

by tectonic plate movements. 

The seismicity of Iceland is shown in this map below.

Even though earthquakes are very common here,  they cause little

damage due to the quality construction of buildings and homes in this region.

This is also not a highly populated country which contributes to the low incidence

of injury or death, even in a large earthquake.

There is a great deal of research and outreach on public safety, 

from the Icelandic government which also  helps with mitigation of damages.

References: 

Icelandic Meteorological Office:

https://en.vedur.is/earthquakes-and-volcanism/earthquakes

Earthquake Engineering Research Centre:

https://eerc.hi.is/is

Everything you need to know about earthquakes in Iceland

https://traveo.is

Government of Iceland

https://www.government.is/