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Random pictures

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
Sun, 23 Jul
Sun, 23 Jul 09:07 UTCM 0.4 / 0.1 km18 km20.5 km W of Jöklasel
Sun, 23 Jul 08:32 UTCM 0.9 / 0.1 km18 km23.0 km WSW of Jöklasel
Sun, 23 Jul 08:28 UTCM 0.1 / 4.8 km5 km2.7 km NNW of Hvannadalshnjúkur
Sat, 22 Jul
Sat, 22 Jul 11:50 UTCM 0.3 / 0.7 km4 km2.8 km WSW of Hvannadalshnjúkur
Fri, 21 Jul
Fri, 21 Jul 13:45 UTCM 0.7 / 7.1 km3 km3.6 km ENE 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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