We continue Carl’s story of Laki. I highly recommend anyone who has not read ‘Central volcanoes of Vatnajökull’ to do so carefully, otherwise you will most likely be lost fairly quickly, see it as the prequel to this multi-part article. Previous Lakí research Up until 1993 research into the Skaftár Fires was based upon a…
If you are now wondering why you never heard of this, this was a prediction, not an event. The volcano decided otherwise 38 per cent of all eruptions in Iceland come from Grimsvötn. It is an amazing number: this hidden volcano, invisible and unreachable to all but the most hardy explorer, is among the most…
A while ago Jesper Sandberg asked a question about if Grimsvötn could sprout forth a lava lake. I somewhat sloppily answered that I did not think that it was possible. Jesper then asked why not, and I got somewhat flustered since I did not have a ready answer. I promised to come back with a…
At 19.03 local time the automatic SIL-system in Iceland picked up a strong tremor signal. When this type of tremor signal is visible in Iceland it is normally associated with either a large jökulhlaup (rapid glacial melt outflow) that can become larger than the output of the Amazon River, or it is associated with an…
After a couple of rather hectic volcanic weeks in the world of volcanoes I thought I would write a little something about two of these events. Namely Stromboli and Grimsvötn, the reason I am cherry picking those two is that they have a common theme, water. Stromboli Unless you have been to Stromboli you…
In this article I will pick up with the questions regarding age, GPS-tracks and the general setting. Knowing me it is quite likely that I will meander out into wild tangents as I go. Time to Greíp my pen. The age of Greíp For a volcano that has not erupted (we will get back…
Part 1 of a Greip Series This week, under the rumblings of Torfajökull, we return to one of our favourite areas within Vatnajökull that is yet to show it’s true hand. Or has it already and is there evidence to support that? Due to some recent activity, Carl has been getting increasingly excited in…
Let’s start with a question. Which country do you think has the most frequent volcanic eruptions? Before you read on (or peek below for the answer), take a minute to think about it. You can probably guess that Australia is not a front runner. In fact, only two or three countries readily come to mind.…
Grimsvötn is heading for an eruption. There can be no doubt about that. Of course, it is always heading for an eruption. This volcano has ADHD. For Grimsvötn, more than a decade of brooding is unusual: normally it just throws it out. A misplaced snow flake can set it off. And it produces not…
In August of 2017 Albert and I stuck our necks out on a limb and made a forecast each of what the future pattern of Grimsvötn was most likely to be. Or in other words, when would it erupt next. As I reread our two separate forecasts, I am struck by how different methodologies we…