Summary Info
Posted by JAC on 3/21/2010, 8:30 am
Eyjafjallajökull
   5466 ft (1666 m) .  

Location:  Southern Iceland,
20 miles (35 km) NW of Vik
Lat / Long:  63.6° N, 19.6° W
Volcanic Type:  Stratovolcano
Volcanic Status:  Active, last eruption 1823
First Ascent:  Sveinn Palsson, 1773





Eyjafjallajokull is a large stratovolcano topped by a 1.5 mile (2.5 km) diameter ice-filled caldera, with several major outlet glaciers pouring through gaps in the caldera rim.

It is located directly on the south coast of Iceland, and its name means "Island Mountain Glacier" after the nearby Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands) just off the coast.

Like many of the volcanoes of south and west Iceland, its climbing history dates back to the 1700's.

Access to the south and east flanks is very easy from the coastal highway.

It is supposedly a very fine climb (with alpine ice climbing possibilities on several routes) and also a great ski ascent/descent.














The E-W-trending summit ridge of Eyjafjöll, located immediately west of Katla volcano, is seen here from the NW with the steep-sloped Falljökull valley glacier descending at the left toward the Markafljot plain.

The summit of 1666-m-high Eyjafjöll is truncated by a 2.5-km-wide summit caldera, which is breached to the north.

Only a single historical eruption is known from Eyjafjöll, during December 1821 to January 1823.

Photo by Oddur Sigurdsson, 1992 (Icelandic National Energy Authority).






486
In this thread:
Eruption started at Eyjafjallajokull in Iceland - JAC, 3/21/2010, 8:09 am
< Return to the front page of the: message board | monthly archive this page is in
Post A Reply
This thread has been archived and can no longer receive replies.