Week 5: Volcanoes

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This week in class we're exploring volcanic activity. Volcanoes are a rupture of the Earth's crust where hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases escape from below the surface. Volcanoes occur here because the Earth's crust is broken into 17 major tectonic plates and most volcanoes can be found where these plates converge or diverge. An example of divergent tectonic plates is the Mid Atlantic Ridge. An example of convergent tectonic plates is the Ring of Fire. My country, Iceland, sits right on top of the Mid Atlantic Ridge, a tectonic plate boundary and a hot spot so volcanoes are a major part of the Icelandic life. 

In fact, if it wasn't for volcanic activity, Iceland would not even exist. Volcanic eruptions in the Mid Atlantic Ridge, on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, created a mountain which grew above sea level, and resulted in an island, Iceland. The pocket of magma that sits beneath Iceland is thought to be what created the island, as hot lava rose to the surface of the ocean, where it cooled and gradually accumulated into an island beginning about 70 million years ago. Because of it's location , Iceland has about 130 volcanoes although only 30 are considered active. Iceland has nearly all known types of volcanoes (subaerial, subglacial and submarine) and they are Iceland's biggest and most dangerous natural hazard. Small eruptions happen every 4-5 years in Iceland and given how different each eruption can be they can be either an annoying bother or catastrophic to the inhabitants of Iceland.

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Let's take a look at some of the more recent eruptions in Iceland and the hazards they caused: 

When people think of Iceland and volcanoes the one they are most familiar with is the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull back in 2010 that shut European air travel down for six days with it's huge billowing plume of steam and ash. This eruption created the the highest level of air travel disruption since the Second World War and cost the airline industry an estimated loss of $1.7 billion. Eyjafjallajökull is a subglacial volcano located in Southern Iceland. In addition to the interruption of air travel the lava from the eruption also caused ice to melt on the glacier which in turn caused flooding of local steams and rivers, specifically the Markarfljót glacial river which flooded farmland and damaged roads.

Here is a link if you want to learn how to pronounce Eyjafjallajökull:)

Another recent eruption was the Grímsvötn eruption in 2011. This eruption also shut down air travel for 4 days but not to the extent that Eyjafjallajökull did back in 2010. Grímsvötn is Iceland's most active volcano. This eruption was the largest volcanic eruption in Iceland in 50 years. Glacier flooding was expected after this eruption but it never occurred. 

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Grímsvötn

Predicting volcanic activity in Iceland:

Volcanic eruptions are among the earth’s most cataclysmic events, and understanding how and when they happen can be crucial to saving lives and reducing damage to infrastructure and other property. Scientists have several powerful tools to help, but in the end, they are often reduced to analyzing possibilities within possibilities, chains of potential events that could unfold in multiple ways. According to our textbook, it is unlikely that we'll be able to accurately forecast the majority of volcanic activity in the near future (Keller 152) The Icelandic Meteorological Office monitors volcanic activity through the South Iceland Lowland national seismic network, various volumetric strain meters and continuous geodetic GPS stations. Despite this monitoring, volcanic eruptions can be different each time and techniques to predict volcanoes are not an exact science. They can only take the seismic activity and other indications of volcanic activity and predict what they "think" will happen. There is no certainty in volcanic activity.


Iceland's emergency guidelines for volcanic activity: 

The Icelandic Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management developed regional volcanic risk management strategies. Distribution of pamphlets with guidelines for different volcanic zones in Iceland (i.e. ‘Katla-Myrdalsjökull, Hekla, Eyjafjallajökull and Grímsvötn)is one way they are get information to the public. They also put together meetings with tourism companies and mountain hut communities to educate tourists about what to do in case of an eruption. Hazard and emergency response information signs were erected along trails for hikers and tourists. The inhabitants of Iceland are very familiar with volcano precautions but tourists, visiting from so many diverse environments, may not have the education about volcanoes and this could be catastrophic for them. For more information on Iceland’s volcanic hazards and related preparedness measures here are some sites that give safety information:
• http://www.safetravel.is/
• http://en.vedur.is/ 
• http://www.earthice.hi.is/page/ies_volcanoes 
• http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/ road-conditions-and-weather/
 
1.Example pamphlet from the Civil Protection Department regarding the emergency guidelines for the Katla and Eyjafjallajökull volcano eruptions

2. Example poster regarding volcano emergency guidelines for Katla

Works cited:

Keller, Edward and Duane DeVecchio. Natural Hazards. New Jersey: Prentice, 2012. Print.

Photo credit: 
1) Map of volcanoes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volcanology_of_Iceland
2) Map of volcanoes http://futurevolc.hi.is/volcanoes-and-monitoring
3)  Grímsvötn- http://inapcache.boston.com/universal/site_graphics/blogs/bigpicture/erupticeland_052411/bp4.jpg