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Location:
Europe,
Iceland, Grimsvoetn |
Category:
Volcano webcam |
Description:
View of the
volcano at Grimsvotn |
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Location Information:
The
Grímsvötn lakes are lakes in
Iceland. They lie in the highlands
of Iceland at the northwestern side
of the Vatnajökull glacier and are
covered by its ice cap. Beneath them
is the magma chamber of a volcano
called by the same name. The
location of the lakes is 64°25′N
17°20′W, at an elevation of 1,725 m
(5,659 ft).
Grímsvötn has a
southwest-northeast-trending fissure
system, and the massive
climate-impacting Laki fissure
eruption of 1783-1784 was a part of
the same fissure system. Grímsvötn
was erupting at the same time as
Laki during 1783, but continued to
erupt until 1785. Because most of
the volcano lies underneath
Vatnajökull, most of its eruptions
have been subglacial.
Harmonic tremor was recorded twice
around Grímsvötn on 2 and 3 October
2010, potentially indicating an
impending eruption. At the same
time, sudden inflation was measured
by GPS in the volcano, indicating
magma movement under the mountain.
On 1 November 2010 meltwater from
the Vatnajökull glacier was flowing
into the lake, suggesting that an
eruption of the underlying volcano
might be imminent. On 21 May at
1925 UTC, an eruption began, with 12
km (7.5 mi) high plumes accompanied
by multiple earthquakes. Subglacial
eruptions regularly give rise to
glacial bursts as jökulhlaups.
Eruptions may melt enough ice to
fill the Grímsvötn caldera with
water, and the pressure may be
enough to suddenly lift the icecap,
allowing huge quantities of water to
escape rapidly. Consequently, the
Grímsvötn caldera is monitored very
carefully by scientists. When a
large eruption occurred in 1996,
geologists knew well in advance that
a glacial burst was imminent. It did
not occur until several weeks after
the eruption finished, but the
monitoring let the Icelandic ring
road (Hringvegur) be closed when the
burst occurred. A section of road
across the Skeiðará sandur was
washed away in the ensuing flood,
but no one was hurt.
Local
Weather:
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