Krafla volcano
Caldera 650 m / 2,133 ft
Northeastern Iceland, 65.73°N / -16.78°W
Current status: normal or dormant (1 out of 5)
Northeastern Iceland, 65.73°N / -16.78°W
Current status: normal or dormant (1 out of 5)
Last update: 5 Jul 2013
Krafla is one of Iceland's most spectacular and most active volcanoes. During the 1970's and 1980's, it became famous for its "Krafla Fires" - curtains of lava fountains from a system of fissures inside the hige caldera.
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Krafla volcano eruptions: 1724, 1727, 1728, 1728, 1729, 1746, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1981, 1984
Latest nearby earthquakes
| Time | Mag. / Depth | Distance | Location | |
| Sun, 28 Feb 2021 (GMT) (4 earthquakes) | ||||
| 28 Feb 2021 19:02:20 GMT | 1.3 18 km - More | 25 km | 17.4 Km WSW of Þeistareykir, Iceland | |
| 28 Feb 2021 6:09 pm (GMT +0) (28 Feb 2021 18:09:32 GMT) | 2.6 9.1 km - More | 96 km | 13.1 Km WNW of Gjögurtá, Iceland | |
| 28 Feb 2021 4:47 pm (GMT +0) (28 Feb 2021 16:47:32 GMT) | 1.4 9.4 km - More | 67 km | 9.7 Km ENE of Flatey, Iceland | |
| 28 Feb 2021 2:04 pm (GMT +0) (28 Feb 2021 14:04:03 GMT) | 0.6 11 km - More | 67 km | 9.8 Km NE of Flatey, Iceland | |
| Sat, 27 Feb 2021 (GMT) (1 earthquake) | ||||
| 27 Feb 2021 10:56 pm (GMT +0) (27 Feb 2021 22:56:22 GMT) | 1.4 7.4 km - More | 59 km | 13.0 Km WSW of Kópasker, Iceland | |
Background
Krafla is a central volcano NE of Myvatn lake and has a 10-km-wide caldera, that was formed around 100,000 years ago by a violent ryhyolitic tuff-forming eruption. The caldera is cut by a N-S-trending fissure system.Krafla has been the source of many rifting and eruptive events during the Holocene, including two in historical time, during 1724-29 and 1975-84. The prominent Hverfjall and Ludent tuff rings east of Myvatn were erupted along the 100-km-long fissure system, which extends as far as the north coast of Iceland.
Iceland's renowned Myvatn lake formed during the eruption of the older Laxarhraun lava flow from the Ketildyngja shield volcano of the Fremrinamur volcanic system about 3800 years before present (BP); its present shape is constrained by the roughly 2000 years BP younger Laxarhraun lava flow from the Krafla volcanic system. The abundant pseudocraters that form a prominent part of the Myvatn landscape were created when the younger Laxarhraun lava flow entered the lake.
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Source: GVP, Smithsonian Institution
See also: Sentinel hub | Landsat 8
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