Bárðarbunga
| Bárðarbunga | |
|---|---|
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 2,009 m (6,591 ft) |
| Prominence | 550 m (1,800 ft) |
| Coordinates | 64°38′27.6″N 17°31′40.8″W / 64.641000°N 17.528000°WCoordinates: 64°38′27.6″N 17°31′40.8″W / 64.641000°N 17.528000°W |
| Geography | |
 Bárðarbunga
Map of Iceland showing the location of Bárðarbunga.
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| Location | Vatnajökull, Iceland |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | over 10000 years |
| Mountain type | Subglacial volcano/Icelandic stratovolcano |
| Last eruption | 29 August 2014 to 27 February 2015 |
Bárðarbunga (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈpaurðarpuŋka]),Bardarbunga (Anglophone spelling), is a stratovolcano located under Vatnajökull, Iceland's most extensive glacier. The second highest mountain in Iceland, 2,009 metres (6,591 ft) above sea level, Bárðarbunga is also part of a volcanic system that is approximately 200 kilometres (120 mi) long and 25 kilometres (16 mi) wide.
Bárðarbunga is a subglacial stratovolcano located under the ice cap of Vatnajökull glacier within the Vatnajökull National Park in Iceland. It rises to 2,009 metres (6,591 ft) above sea level, making it the second highest mountain in Iceland, about 101 metres (331 ft) lower than Hvannadalshnjúkur. The caldera is about 80 square kilometres, up to 10 km wide and about 700 metres (2,300 ft) deep. The surrounding edges rise up to 1,850 metres but the base is on average close to 1,100 metres. The volcano is covered in ice to a depth of 850m, hiding the glacier-filled crater. The associated volcanic system and fissure swarm is about 190 km long and 25 km wide.
Bárðarbunga was a little-known volcano in Iceland due to its remote location and infrequent eruptions approximately once every 50 years, but recent studies have shown that many tephra layers originally thought to be from other volcanoes were ejected from Bárðarbunga.
Sustained seismic activity has occurred in Bárðarbunga for some years, only recently leading to an eruption. The previous eruption was in 1910. There has been frequent volcanic activity outside the glacier to the southwest in the highlands between Vatnajökull and Mýrdalsjökull, and also to the northeast toward Dyngjufjöll.
Over the last seven years seismic activity has been gradually increasing in Bárðarbunga and the fissure swarm to the north of the volcano. This activity decreased after the Grímsvötn eruption in May 2011, but has now returned to a similar level as before the eruption.
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Wikipedia