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Syrtlingur

Vestmannaeyjar

Fissure vent · Iceland · 283m

The island of Heimaey, about 10 km off the south coast of Iceland, is part of the Vestmannaeyjar volcanic system, which comprises numerous islands and submarine vents. Heimaey probably formed in the Holocene, through numerous eruptions. Here, an ash-laden eruption plume rises above a volcanic cone behind the town of Vestmannaeyjar in 1973. The water pumping operation in the foreground was designed to cool the front of an advancing lava flow that threatened the town and its harbor.
The island of Heimaey, about 10 km off the south coast of Iceland, is part of the Vestmannaeyjar volcanic system, which comprises numerous islands and submarine vents. Heimaey probably formed in the Holocene, through numerous eruptions. Here, an ash-laden eruption plume rises above a volcanic cone behind the town of Vestmannaeyjar in 1973. The water pumping operation in the foreground was designed to cool the front of an advancing lava flow that threatened the town and its harbor. · Photo: Photo by Jack Lockwood, 1973 (U.S. Geological Survey). · Wikimedia Commons
Type
Fissure vent
Country
Iceland
Region
Atlantic Ocean Volcanic Regions / Iceland Neovolcanic Rift Volcanic Province
Elevation
283m
Coordinates
63.416, -20.266
Last eruption
1973
Tectonic setting
Rift zone / Oceanic crust (< 15 km)
Landform
Cluster
Major rock type
Basalt / Picro-Basalt
Geological summary

The mostly submarine Vestmannaeyjar volcanic system is the southernmost and youngest volcanic center of the Eastern Volcanic Zone that cuts across E-central Iceland. It consists of a roughly 30 x 40 km group of basaltic islands and submarine cones occupying a shallow shelf off the S coast of Iceland, and was the site of two of Iceland's most noted 20th-century eruptions. The island of Surtsey grew from the ocean floor during 1963-67. The island of Heimaey, 20 km to the NE, was the site of eruptions in 1973, during which lava flows partially overran the town of Vestmannaeyjar and threatened its harbor. Twenty-two postglacial eruption sites are known, and all ten subaerial vents on Heimaey are of Holocene age.

From Wikipedia

Jólnir was formerly a volcanic island south of Iceland. It was a former vent of Surtsey, along with Syrtlingur and Surtla. It emerged from the ocean as a result of active plate tectonics between December 1965 and July 1966. Oceanic erosion cyclically wore down the new lava as it formed, and the island sank below the surface several times.

Wikipedia · CC BY-SA · Read full article →

Eruption history

Summary (VEI over time)
Click a bar to see individual eruptions
8050 BCE~7716 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI 47716 BCE~7382 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI 36379 BCE~6045 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?4709 BCE~4375 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?4375 BCE~4041 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI 34041 BCE~3707 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?1305~1639 · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?1639~1973 · 3 eruptions · max VEI 38050 BCE5711 BCE3038 BCE700 BCE1639

Detailed timeline

  1. 1973VEI 3Observed
    1973-01-23 – 1973-06-28
    Heimaey (Eldfell)
  2. 1963VEI 3Observed
    1963-11-08 – 1967-06-05
    Surtsey
  3. 1896VEI ?Observed
    1896-09 – Ongoing
    South or SE of Hellisey
  4. 1637VEI ?Observed
    1637-10 – 1638-02-28
    SW of Heimaey ?
  5. 3950 BCE (±300 yrs)VEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 3950 – Ongoing
    Heimaey (Helgafell)
  6. 4270 BCE (±200 yrs)VEI 3Geological estimate
    BCE 4270 – Ongoing
    Heimaey (Saefell tuff cone)
  7. 4550 BCE (±500 yrs)VEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 4550 – Ongoing
    Heimaey (Stórhöfdi tuff cone)
  8. 6050 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 6050 – Ongoing
    Alsey, Brandur, Sudurey, Hellisey
  9. 7550 BCEVEI 3Geological estimate
    BCE 7550 – Ongoing
    NW Heimaey (Nordurklettar)
  10. 8050 BCEVEI 4Geological estimate
    BCE 8050 – Ongoing
    NW Heimaey (Háin tuff ring)

External links

⚠ For reference only. Not for emergency response.