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Iceland geology in real time


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This might help. The brown outline is the danger area where new ones are expected to open up along the line of the dyke. 

map2.thumb.jpg.8dd2aae6b7482cfae6bb81cb13d21bdf.jpg

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The nearest place of any size is Grindavik about 10km away to the SW but they say there's no danger except from gasses - apparently the valleys should contain the lava at the current rate of flow.  

Edited by RobH
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Blue Lagoon a tourst honey pot is due west about the same distance as Grindavik. The baths use the exhaust cooling water from ageothermal power station !

In 2000 at Katla power station in the NE pf Icelnad they drilled into magma  and lost control of the borehole

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iceland_Deep_Drilling_Project

after the valve failed all thay could do was heap rocks over the escaping very high pressure steam to try to silence the deafening roar.

Excitng engineering !!

Peter

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Long before the Blue Lagoon, in the 60s, I took part in a schools expedition to Iceland, in which we pony-trekked across the island from Reykyavik to Akureyri, between the icecaps of Hofsjokull and Vatnajokull.       On the way, we visited a 'secret' hot bath, smaller than a swimming pool but bigger than a bath tub.       It was hidden in a cliff of old lava and I presume kept warm, despite the snow above,  by residual heat in the lava flow.     An extraordinary exprience!

John

Edited by john.r.davies
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I think these thermal pools are fed by groundwater seeping deeper into the crust. Many are recorded centuries ago.One in the mid-point of Johns route was used as  arefuge by a medieval outlaw, even in winter.  I suppose they ate frozen food, steam-cooked, to survive.

Lava flows cool rather  quickly. Heimaey's erupted lava was exploited for heating but only lasted 10 years or so before it ran out.

John' route is now rather popular with tourists, but only legally usable by 4x4 or buses. Cars are reported and fined. There are several mountain huts with very basic facilites en route. But they have to be booked a couple of years ahead.

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I did have pictures, but they were on 35mm film slides!  That long ago!

I do  remember staying in a house like this, but in the middle of nowhere!

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We used ponies like this, and just as shaggy.  They have a unique and natural 'pace', between a walk and a trot, the "tolt", which is smooth and easy for the rider, but we had to learn to get them to do it.  It made a great difference to the bum at the end of the day!

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Thanks, Peter! For reviving memories!

John

Edited by john.r.davies
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John, my memories are more  recent, 20 years ago, and  this is the hut we stayed the first night, bringing our own food and sleeping bags

https://www.fi.is/is/skalar/skalar-ferdafelags-islands/hvitarnes

views of a large lke with glacier at far end and ice-floes.

In 2010 we went on a Liverpool Univs/ Geol Soc tour ( by bus) which is described in seven sections, the first here:

https://cuesta-consulting.com//wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Iceland-2010-Guide-Web-version-SECTION-1.pdf

on the map the green section is John's route. The blue section  is Sprengisandur, a cold desert.

Not a place for TRs. However the ring road around Iceland is now all tarmac, leaving the only problem of getting the  cars there, the ferry runs fron Denmark via Faroes.

Peter

 

 

 

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Tks Pete, the close-up footage is fascinating. I watched the Holuhraun eruption he mentions , it was huge, fountains of magma, but the webcam was several km away. From what he says the flow is not diminushing, this could be a long thread.

The toxic gas is mainly SO2 whcih combines with water to make sulphuric acid, hence the crude scarf gas mask will work, sort of.

Peter

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
7 minutes ago, RobH said:

Hraun landowners association representative Sigurður Guðjón Gíslason told Stöð 2. “This must be the hottest piece of land in Iceland right now,”:lol::lol:

Stuart.

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5 hours ago, stillp said:

I u8nderstand the Icelandic Prime Minister has declared that no-one will be allowed to charge any fee to view the volcano.

Pete

None of the geological sites have entry fees, but cafes etc, yes. Over a year there are three tourists for every Icelander. 

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7 minutes ago, Peter Cobbold said:

None of the geological sites have entry fees, but cafes etc, yes. Over a year there are three tourists for every Icelander. 

Yes, the PM was making it clear that anyone buying the land is not going to be allowed to create a volcano theme park and make millions.

Pete

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Another newscast:  a bulldozed berm to try to stop the lava flow from reaching a road, and erupting like a lava geysir

 

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