Mýrdalsjökull

Coordinates: 63°40′N 19°06′W / 63.667°N 19.100°W / 63.667; -19.100
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Mýrdalsjökull

Mýrdalsjökull (pronounced

dale glacier" or "(the) mire valley glacier") is an ice cap in the south of Iceland. It is to the north of Vík í Mýrdal and to the east of the smaller ice cap Eyjafjallajökull. Between these two glaciers is Fimmvörðuháls pass. Its peak reaches 1,493 m (4,898 ft) in height and in the year 1980 it covered an area of approximately 595 km2 (230 sq mi).[1] In 2016 the covered area of Mýrdalsjökull was believed to be 540 km2 (210 sq mi).[2]

The icecap of the glacier covers an active

Katla. The caldera
of the volcano has a diameter of 10 km (6 mi) and the volcano erupts usually every 40–80 years. The last eruption took place in 1918. Scientists are actively monitoring the volcano, particularly after the eruption of nearby Eyjafjallajökull began in April 2010. Since the year 930, 16 eruptions have been documented.

The Eldgjá, a volcanic eruption fissure about 30 km (19 mi) long, which erupted in the year 939, is part of the same volcanic system.[3]

Before the Hringvegur (the main ring road round the island) was built, people feared traversing the plains in front of the volcano because of the frequent jökulhlaups (glacial floods) and the deep rivers to be crossed, although the road is still vulnerable to major events. Especially dangerous was the glacial flood after the eruption of 1918 when the coastline was extended by 5 km (3.1 mi) by laharic flood deposits.

Mýrdalsjökull is an exceedingly wet location, with models suggesting it receives more than 10 metres of precipitation annually.[4]

  • Mýrdalsjökull ice cap concealing Katla volcano
    Mýrdalsjökull ice cap concealing Katla volcano
  • Mýrdalsjökull
    Mýrdalsjökull
  • An "ice castle" formation on Mýrdalsjökull
    An "ice castle" formation on Mýrdalsjökull
  • Mýrdalsjökull glacier covered volcanic ash
    Mýrdalsjökull glacier covered volcanic ash
  • Outlet glacier Sólheimajökull
    Outlet glacier Sólheimajökull

See also

References

  1. ISSN 0022-1430
    .
  2. ISBN 978-94-6239-207-6
    , retrieved 2024-04-26
  3. S2CID 202923626
    .
  4. ^ "Late Holocene Glacial History of Sólheimajökull, Southern Iceland" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-20.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mýrdalsjökull.

63°40′N 19°06′W / 63.667°N 19.100°W / 63.667; -19.100

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