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RVK Newscast #100: The Volcano Is Now A Fire Geyser!
The volcano in Geldingadalir is becoming even weirder and has now transformed into a kind of fire geyser. Currently, all of the craters have now dried up except the one scientists call Number Five. And said crater is behaving like a geyser,…
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Increased Explosive Activity At Volcano Site: 50m Magma Eruptions
Explosive activity has increased in the southernmost crater at the eruption sites on the Reykjanes peninsula. The magma jets have only been been ten to fifteen meters high before recently where they now reach more than 50 meters into the air, says…
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RVK Newscast #98: Engineers Want To Change The Lava Flow In Fagradalsfjall
The lava at the eruption site in Fagradalsfjall is now on average 16 metres high with a stable flow rate of 5 cubic metres per second. Today, we discuss an engineering firm which wants to do experiments to control the lava flow…
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RVK Newscast #97: How Volcanos Affect Global Warming, Lavafall & New Dead Fissures
Today, we ask a few questions: Is it completely pointless to try to reduce greenhouse gas emissions considering the large pollution of volcanos? And how exactly do volcanos affect their surroundings? In short, Valur and Art visit the volcano, talk volcanos, and…
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RVK Newscast #96: What To Call The New Lava Field?
COVID-19 is on the rise again after an individual broke quarantine after coming home from abroad. Also—the town of Grindavík is looking for a new name for the lava field from Geldingadalsgos. At the end, Valur explains his name as well as…
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RVK Newscast #95: The Volcano Area Has Changed Dramatically!
We visited the volcano in Geldingadalir the same day that four new vents sprouted up in the area and it’s safe to say that the area has changed drastically. The lava is now around 10 million cubic metres in total with 5…
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Ask a Geologist: With Its Several Hotspots, Could Reykjavík Erupt?
We asked geologist Ed Marshall, a postdoc in Mantle Geochemistry and Igneous Petrology at the University of Iceland: do Reykjavík’s several geothermal hot spots indicate that the city could turn into the scene of a Hollywood disaster movie. To put it simply:…
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The Kindness Of Strangers: Searching For Puffins In The Westman Islands
In the Westman Islands, opportunities for seeing puffins—the colourful seabird often associated with the north Atlantic—are manifold. You can enjoy the raw but very dead heart of the puffin for your glorious, carnivorous lunch. You can also buy stuffed puffins in gift…
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Don’t Ask Nanna: About Fisherman’s Fat
Hi Nanna, While visiting the the Maritime Museum in Bolungarvík I learned that in the olden days Icelandic Fishermen used to use lýsi to make their clothes waterproof, how many litres do you think I’d need to make say a large jacket…
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Video: Take a One Minute Nature Break
On a recent road trip around Iceland, our resident videographer Timothée Lambrecq took a few moments to chill in some of the more picturesque spots he found. So if you’re sitting at your desk and having stressful day, here’s a clip of…
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Kálfstindar: Take Your Pick
Elevation: 824 m Ascent time: 2.5-3.5 hrs Length: 4 km Map: 37 Elevation difference: 600 m The mountain A tuya or stapi mountain is a subglacial volcanic structure on top of a short volcanic fissure. If a longer, subglacial volcanic fissure opens…
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Holuhraun To Be Named Holuhraun
A decision was finally been made on what to name the lava field wrought by the Holuhraun eruption: Holuhraun. Vísir reports that the Skútustaðahreppur shire council has reached a final decision on what to name the new lava field borne from last…
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Café Offers Edible Lava, Sorta
A café in the Westfjords now has “lava” on the menu, or a very believable facsimile thereof. RÚV reports that the café in question, Bræðraborg, is now offering to let people enjoy chunks of “lava” to eat. The lava in question does…
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Beer Connoisseur’s Guide To Icelandic Beer
You have probably read somewhere that Icelandic authorities banned beer for very, very many years, until 1989. But true freedom of beer did not really begin until 2005, when Iceland’s first craft brewery was established on a remote farm in North Iceland.…
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Walking Path Around Holuhraun Opens
You can now take a walk close to the Holuhraun lava field, provided you are very, very careful. RÚV reports that employees of Vatnsjökull National Park have opened a walking path just north of the lava field, near Dyngjusand. While this means…
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Bláfjöll: Below The Lava Field
We drove past the lava fields on a gloomy day. It had rained in the morning and the green moss gave a bright contrast to the black volcanic landscape. David, our tour guide, pointed at the mountains ahead of us and said:…
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Volcano Has Maybe Stopped Erupting, Not 100% Sure
Víðir Reynisson, Department Head at Iceland’s Civil Protection has told RÚV that although it looks as if Holuhraun has stopped erupting, it is too soon to say for certain. In the past few days the lava flow has decreased significantly and a…
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Lava Swallows Unsuspecting Sign Post
The police of Norðurland Eystra took a picture of a sign post in front of the still-growing Holuhraun lava field on Saturday. The signpost has since been swallowed by the slow but inevitable tide of molten lava, reports Vísir. https://www.facebook.com/logreglannordurlandieystra/photos/a.1541183842800560.1073741835.1534713560114255/1541588386093439/?type=1&permPage=1 The situation…
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So, Holuhraun Is Still Erupting
The Holuhraun eruption which began in August of last year is still going strong and producing 50-70 cubic metres of lava each second, reports Vísir. Heavy seismic activity continues in the Bárðarbunga area, though it is not as significant as it was…
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Holuhraun Eruption Looks Like A Santa Hat
An aerial image of the Holuhraun eruption and the surrounding lava field was the inspiration for the Earth Sciences Institute’s (ESI) annual Christmas card this year, reports RÚV. The eruption site and lava field have – through the wonders of Windows Paint…
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Volcano Watch: Lava Field Bigger Than Lake Mývatn
The lava field created by the Holuhraun eruption is now 44.5 square kilometres, reports RÚV. By comparison, Lake Mývatn is 37 km2. Seismic activity continues to be strong with as many as 60 earthquakes reported in the Bárðarbunga area on Saturday. The…
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Volcano Watch: Bárðarbunga And Holuhraun Update
Bárðarbunga caldera continues to subside at the same rate as before, roughly half a metre per day, reports the Institute of Earth Sciences. Large earthquakes are still being detected in the Bárðarbunga caldera, several with a magnitudes over 3, some over 5.…
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Volcano Update: Bárðarbunga Continues To Subside
The subsidence of the Bárðarbunga caldera continues, sinking by 45 cm just this morning following an earthquake with the magnitude of 5.4, reports RÚV. Yesterday, Civil Protection (CPEM) reported a subsidence of over 50 cm. Currently there is no information about the progress…