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Öraefajökull's glacier-covered caldera seen from the air (photo: (c)Tom Pfeiffer)
Öraefajökull's glacier-covered caldera seen from the air (photo: (c)Tom Pfeiffer)
Latest news:
Öraefajökull volcano (Iceland): seismic unrest
Öraefajökull volcano in SE Iceland
Wednesday, Sep 28, 2011
Iceland's tallest volcano, the large sub-glacial Öraefajökull volcano under Vatnajökull glacier on the SE tip of Iceland has been showing an unusual number of earthquakes over the past weeks, rising some concern that the volcano might erupt again. ... [more]

 

Öraefajökull volcano

Stratovolcano 2119 m (6,952 ft)
Iceland, 64°N / -16.65°W
Current status: dormant (1 out of 5)
Öraefajökull volcano books | Tours
Last update: 5 Jul 2013
Typical eruption style:

Explosive.


Öraefajökull volcano eruptions: 1362 (Plinian eruption), 1727-28 (sub-Plinian)
TimeMag. / DepthDistanceLocation
Tue, 26 Sep
Tue, 26 Sep 16:09 UTCM 0.7 / 10.8 km3 km4.6 km S of Hvannadalshnjúkur
Tue, 26 Sep 13:54 UTCM 1.4 / 11.8 km4 km10.6 km SE of Hvannadalshnjúkur
Tue, 26 Sep 01:46 UTCM 0.7 / 5.8 km2 km4.4 km SE of Hvannadalshnjúkur
Mon, 25 Sep
Mon, 25 Sep 08:44 UTCM 1.5 / 2.9 km3 km4.9 km ESE of Hvannadalshnjúkur
Sat, 23 Sep
Sat, 23 Sep 17:35 UTCM 0.4 / 9.7 km5 km6.2 km E of Hvannadalshnjúkur
View all recent quakes
Öraefajökull, Iceland's highest peak, is probably Iceland's most violent volcano. A major silicic eruption in 1362 was Iceland's largest historical explosive eruption. It and another eruption during 1727-28 were accompanied by major jökulhlaups (glacier outburst floods) that caused property damage and fatalities.

Background:

Öraefajökull is a broad glacier-clad central volcano at the SE end of the Vatnajökull icecap. A 4 x 5 km subglacial caldera truncates the summit of the basaltic and rhyolitic volcano. The largest-volume volcano in Iceland, 2119-m-high Öraefajökull was mostly constructed during the Pleistocene. Holocene activity has been dominated by explosive summit eruptions, although flank lava effusions have also occurred.

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Source: GVP, Smithsonian Institution


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