Geologists are investigating indications that magma is building up under the Bárðarbunga volcano in Northern Vatnajökull glacier. A professor of geology at the University of Iceland believes the next eruption in the volcanic system could take place in Bárðarbunga itself.
Bárðarbunga magma chambers filling up
Páll Einarsson, professor of geology at the University of Iceland, told the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service RÚV that there are indications magma is again building up beneath the Bárðarbunga caldera in Northern Vatnajökull glacier following the eruption in Holuhraun last winter.
Páll told RÚV it was not clear from the measurements what was going on beneath the volcano, but that scientists should be able to determine the nature of the current activity over the next few months.
A continuation of activity which began in 1974
Páll pointed out the eruption in Holuhraun was only the last event in a chapter which began in 1974. The volcanic system, which has the Bárðarbunga caldera as its centre has been active since June 1974 when a series of large earthquakes were found in Bárðarbunga. Activity built up until 1996, when an eruption fissure opened up in Gjálp, underneath Vatnajökull Glacier, between the two volcanic Centres of Grímsvötn Caldera and Bárðarbunga caldera. The eruption lasted from 30 September to 13 October 1996, breaking through the ice cap.
After the Gjálp eruption the Bárðarbunga volcanic system was quiet for a while, but several years ago activity picked up again, climaxing in the eruption in Holuhraun. The lava in the Holuhraun eruption came from the magma chamber under Bárðarbunga volcano. The eruption drained the chambers, causing Bárðarbunga to subside by sixty meters.
One of the most powerful volcanoes of Iceland
Páll points out that Bárðarbunga, which is the second highest mountain in Iceland, measuring 2,009 metres (6,591 ft) above sea level, is probably the most powerful volcano in Iceland. The volcanic system which has Bárðarbunga as its centre frequently erupts along the fissure swarm stretching from the volcano, but it has more frequently erupted in the volcano in the centre.
The system and fissure swarm of Bárðarbunga is 190 km long and 25 km wide. Bárðarbunga has erupted on average once every fifty years, with large eruptions every 250-600 years. The largest known volcanic eruption in Iceland after settlement took place in Bárðarbunga in 1477. This eruption, which was one of the most powerful eruptions in the past 10,000 years in Iceland, had a Volcanic Explosive Index, VEI of 6. The VEI index measures the distribution of ash and volcanic materials from an eruption. An eruption in Bárðarbunga could pose significant challenges for airline travel in the Northern hemisphere.
Geologists are investigating indications that magma is building up under the Bárðarbunga volcano in Northern Vatnajökull glacier. A professor of geology at the University of Iceland believes the next eruption in the volcanic system could take place in Bárðarbunga itself.
Bárðarbunga magma chambers filling up
Páll Einarsson, professor of geology at the University of Iceland, told the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service RÚV that there are indications magma is again building up beneath the Bárðarbunga caldera in Northern Vatnajökull glacier following the eruption in Holuhraun last winter.
Páll told RÚV it was not clear from the measurements what was going on beneath the volcano, but that scientists should be able to determine the nature of the current activity over the next few months.
A continuation of activity which began in 1974
Páll pointed out the eruption in Holuhraun was only the last event in a chapter which began in 1974. The volcanic system, which has the Bárðarbunga caldera as its centre has been active since June 1974 when a series of large earthquakes were found in Bárðarbunga. Activity built up until 1996, when an eruption fissure opened up in Gjálp, underneath Vatnajökull Glacier, between the two volcanic Centres of Grímsvötn Caldera and Bárðarbunga caldera. The eruption lasted from 30 September to 13 October 1996, breaking through the ice cap.
After the Gjálp eruption the Bárðarbunga volcanic system was quiet for a while, but several years ago activity picked up again, climaxing in the eruption in Holuhraun. The lava in the Holuhraun eruption came from the magma chamber under Bárðarbunga volcano. The eruption drained the chambers, causing Bárðarbunga to subside by sixty meters.
One of the most powerful volcanoes of Iceland
Páll points out that Bárðarbunga, which is the second highest mountain in Iceland, measuring 2,009 metres (6,591 ft) above sea level, is probably the most powerful volcano in Iceland. The volcanic system which has Bárðarbunga as its centre frequently erupts along the fissure swarm stretching from the volcano, but it has more frequently erupted in the volcano in the centre.
The system and fissure swarm of Bárðarbunga is 190 km long and 25 km wide. Bárðarbunga has erupted on average once every fifty years, with large eruptions every 250-600 years. The largest known volcanic eruption in Iceland after settlement took place in Bárðarbunga in 1477. This eruption, which was one of the most powerful eruptions in the past 10,000 years in Iceland, had a Volcanic Explosive Index, VEI of 6. The VEI index measures the distribution of ash and volcanic materials from an eruption. An eruption in Bárðarbunga could pose significant challenges for airline travel in the Northern hemisphere.
