Tungnafellsjökull

Tungnafellsjökull seen from the west

Tungnafellsjökull

The Tungnafellsjökull, with an area of about 48 km ² one of the smaller glaciers of Iceland. It is about 10 km long and 5-6 km wide. The highest point of the glacier is at 1535 m.

Location

It is located on the Sprengisandur highland northwest slope of the glacier Vatnajökull shield and west of the nearest and located under the Vatnajökull central volcano Bárðarbunga.

The high valley Vonarskarð with its high temperature area is part of the volcanic system of Tungnafellsjökull and lies between it and the Vatnajökull.

Shape

It is a volcano that consists largely of palagonite, ie arose under glaciers.

The sides of the glaciated mountain range are steep in the south and west.

The highest peak named Háhyrna is located on the west side of the mountain. From there one has a good view over Vonarskarð and sprengisandur.

Volcanism

This is around a large central volcano, forming part of its volcanic system, some columns in the lowlands. He is geologically on the western side of the Eastern volcanic belt of Iceland.

Its shape is roughly circular with a diameter of 20 km and the volcano extends to the Vonarskarð. To the west of the volcano building is a small stratovolcano was formed similar to that of Hekla. He is but collapsed later and it appeared a small caldera, which is filled by glacial ice. Another small caldera the east side is severely eroded.

There are no records of eruptions since the settlement of Iceland. The volcano is considered to be active but because he has broken out in the last 10,000 years, several times, as can be demonstrated to ash layers and from him outgoing crater rows.

Of the two calderas of the volcano is covered by glaciers, the other is free. In it you can see rhyolitic lavas.

Numerous columns with overlying Palagonitrücken draw from from central volcano to the southwest, thus following the main orientation of the active volcanic zone. A little less and heavier attributable columns, however, are found in the north of Tungnafellsjökull.

The Hágöngur volcano in the southwest of the glacier is part of the same volcanic system as well as the high-temperature areas on Vonarskarð.

To the southwest, the volcanic system extends to the east of the Þveralda sprengisandur slope.

Exploration and ascent

The traveling companion and later husband of Ina from Grumbkow, Hans Reck, examined the glacier extent known as the first in 1908.

The first ascent was made, however, only by the Swiss Hermann Stoll in 1911.

If you want to climb to the summit Háhyrna, traveling from Nýidalur at the sprengisandur to Hagakvíslar ( 866m ) and rises from there.