A glacial outburst flood has occurred in Gígjukvísl river, reports RÚV, the National Broadcasting Service. The outburst is caused by the volcano Grímsvötn located beneath Vatnajökull glacier, melting a huge quantity of ice which then bursts out from under the glacier’s edge and rushes to the sea.
The water level in Grímsvötn is similar to what it was in November 2012 when a small flood (around one thousand m3/s, or 35314 ft³/s) occurred. The current flood is expected to be of similar magnitude.
Bergur Einarsson, a geophysicist at the National Met Office, maintains the flood will not cause damage to the bridge over Gígjukvísl river or the national highway. The bridge was built in 1996 after icebergs weighing 100 to 200 tons (200000 to 400000 pounds) struck, and damaged, the old bridge during a massive flood which lasted for several days.
The flood is expected to reach its peak flow towards the end of the week.
Watch a glacial outburst flood that occurred beneath the infamous Eyjafjallajökull below.
A glacial outburst flood has occurred in Gígjukvísl river. The outburst is caused by the volcano Grímsvötn located beneath Vatnajökull glacier. Not expected to cause damage to the bridge over Gígjukvísl river nor the national highway.
A glacial outburst flood has occurred in Gígjukvísl river, reports RÚV, the National Broadcasting Service. The outburst is caused by the volcano Grímsvötn located beneath Vatnajökull glacier, melting a huge quantity of ice which then bursts out from under the glacier’s edge and rushes to the sea.
The water level in Grímsvötn is similar to what it was in November 2012 when a small flood (around one thousand m3/s, or 35314 ft³/s) occurred. The current flood is expected to be of similar magnitude.
Bergur Einarsson, a geophysicist at the National Met Office, maintains the flood will not cause damage to the bridge over Gígjukvísl river or the national highway. The bridge was built in 1996 after icebergs weighing 100 to 200 tons (200000 to 400000 pounds) struck, and damaged, the old bridge during a massive flood which lasted for several days.
The flood is expected to reach its peak flow towards the end of the week.
Watch a glacial outburst flood that occurred beneath the infamous Eyjafjallajökull below.
