Bárðarbunga

Look at Bárðarbunga from the air

Lava Þjórsárhraun

Bárðarbunga is a subglacial central volcano with caldera under the Vatnajökull in Iceland. It reaches an altitude of 2010 m, making it the second highest mountain in Iceland.

• 9.1 Scientific papers
• 9.2 Sport at the Bárðarbunga

Location

Bárðarbunga lies on the northwestern edge of the Vatnajökull between the Grímsvötn and the Tungnafellsjökull. Some glaciers extend down to 1300 m down towards Vonarskarð. The most important is Köldukvísljökull.

Name

The scientist Sveinn Pálsson speaks in his writings of 1794 from Mount Jökulfell if he thinks Bárðarbunga.

Isl bunga means to German bulge.

Volcanism

Bárðarbunga has long been hardly known because of the volcano as far away from the populated areas and also relatively rarely produced visible eruptions due to its position under the great Glacial Shield.

Geological studies have shown, however, that with an area of ​​80 km2, hides one of the largest calderas of the land under the ice. It measures 10 km in diameter and 700 meters deep. On 31 January 1973 she was first detected on satellite images.

At the same time it is at Bárðarbunga around the central volcano of the probably longest volcanic system of Iceland, which has a length of about 190 km and ranges in the south with the Veiðivötn to the vicinity of Landmannalaugar.

Iceland's most extensive so far discovered lava, the lava field Þjórsárhraun, comes from this system. It was created about 8,500 years ago, covers approximately 950 km2 and has a volume of about 2130 km3.

It succeeded in the meantime, numerous tephra layers, which is first attributed to other volcanoes, assign the Bárðarbunga.

Eruption history

Basically, the volcano has erupted in the Holocene at intervals of about 250 to 600 years.

Vatnaöldur and Veiðivötn

Numerous prehistoric eruptions (ie, dating before the ninth century) took place in the southwestern part of the volcanic system of the glacier volcano and two after the settlement of Iceland: the Vatnaöldur eruption in 870 AD. and the Veiðivötn eruption in 1480.

Both eruptions produced crater rows in the part of the Icelandic highlands, which is located northeast of the Hekla, and were relatively large outbreaks.

Torfajökull and Veiðivötn

In the 15th century the powerful explosive eruption triggered the Veiðivötn probably another from the neighboring Torfajökull system. Something similar had happened in the year 870, and because ejected in the Vatnaöldur dark basalt and Torfajökull brighter rhyolite, one speaks of the easily recognizable because two-tone, land acquisition ash layer, which plays an important role in the Tephrochronologie in Iceland. At about the same time the beginning of the colonization of Iceland is recognized namely.

Dyngjuháls

Smaller eruptions more common in the northeastern Bárðarbunga on the ice-free Dyngjuháls place, the last one from 1862 to 1864.

Subglacial eruptions

Studies of glacial ice and ash layers have shown that numerous eruptions took place themselves in and under the glacier, probably in the northeast of the caldera or in their own these outbreaks seem to follow a cycle, some found 1701-1740 instead and others after in 1780. another eruption could be detected after 1864. The last eruption was clearly demonstrated in 1910 at the Loki Fögrufjöll place ( subglacial, explosive ). One suspects since then several other undiscovered eruptions, but so far none of them could be detected, as they must have taken place under the ice cap of the glacier.

Bárðarbunga and Gjálp

The outbreak in 1996 Gjálp may have been triggered by a preceding earthquakes in Bárðarbunga according to latest research. The eruption in Gjálp also replaced on 6 November from a small eruption in the neighboring volcano Bárðarbunga that lasted only briefly, but produced a 4000 m high eruption column.

Potential Hazards

Proven cyclically occurring earthquake series, as well as occurring almost daily small earthquakes at the volcano refer to the ever present possibility of further outbreaks. The volcano is notorious for glacier runs that flow from an eruption in all directions to the lowlands. Also, lava flows and Tephrafall would pose dangers, it should come to a large eruption ..

At intervals of approximately 500 to 800 years, there are always large fissure eruptions in the Southwest Bárðarbunga. This could affect and damage the contained numerous there hydropower plants. The ash would have a negative impact on air traffic and climatic conditions in the Arctic region.

Plane crash

On September 14, 1950, the aircraft crashed on the geyser Bárðarbunga. Due to bad weather on the glacier was the team - the aircraft had no passengers on board - for 4 days without contact with the outside world. It could, however, after 6 days Search all members of the aircraft crew alive, albeit partially injured, recovered.