Exploring a land of fire and ice
Take a closer look at Iceland’s explosively dramatic volcanoes.
On 14 January, a volcano near the town of Grindavik in Iceland erupted for the second time in a month. Molten rock flowed to the edge of the town. On average, a volcano in Iceland erupts every five years but since 2021 that has gone up to nearly one a year. Scientists believe that these eruptions are part of the start of a new period of volcanic activity in the area.
What are volcanoes?
Volcanoes are mountains made of cooled lava (hot melted rock that comes out of volcanoes) and ash. They are formed when chunks of the Earth’s crust, called tectonic plates, come together or move apart and magma is released from deep within the Earth. Magma is what lava is called when it is beneath the Earth’s surface. There are around 1,500 “active” volcanoes (which have erupted and will again) in the world, 80 of which are under the ocean. There are also “dormant” volcanoes, which have not erupted for a long time but still might at some time in the future, and “extinct” volcanoes, which scientists think will never erupt again.
Why are there so many volcanoes in Iceland?
Known as the “Land of Fire and Ice”, Iceland is one of the world’s most active volcanic regions.
It has around 130 volcanoes. This is because Iceland stands on the meeting point of the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. Tectonic plates are vast pieces of solid rock that make up the Earth’s surface. In Iceland, people can see the rift (break) between two plates in the south of the country. You can even walk over it on a bridge. The rift widens by a few centimetres each year as the plates pull apart.
How do volcanoes affect their surroundings?
Volcanoes create dramatic natural landscapes, both on land and underwater. They can create fissures (big
cracks) under the sea, black beaches made of ash, hot springs and even glaciers. Volcanoes make glaciers by pushing rock up, forcing the tops of mountains to freezing levels in the atmosphere. However, when the volcano beneath erupts, it melts the ice immediately, making a river called a jokulhlaup (meaning “glacial run”) that floods the land beneath.
Volcanoes can affect the rest of the world, too. In 2010, a huge eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano sent clouds of ash across the world. Volcanic ash can get into plane engines and jam them, and it makes it hard for pilots to see where they’re going, so most flights in Europe were stopped for around eight days. Around 10 million people’s journeys were disrupted and some ended up stranded after holiday flights home were cancelled.
Is Iceland safe?
Yes. Almost two million people a year visit the country to explore the explosive craters, some of which you can go inside. Iceland has early warning systems in place to let people know if a volcano is going to erupt so they can move to safety. There are “seismic stations” around the country to measure tremors in the Earth. They provide very accurate information to help experts work out when an eruption is likely. Scientists also monitor the changes in volcanic gases and use thermal imaging (special cameras that show heat) to keep an eye on possible eruptions.