How the Eyjafjallajökull volcano stopped air travel in Europe
Learn more about the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull volcano.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
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Transcript
920
1612 or 1613
1821 through 1823
2010
All years with something in common: the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull volcano, one of Iceland’s 30 active volcanoes.
Lying beneath a glacier, Eyjafjallajökull volcano has typically erupted directly prior to or simultaneously with Katla, another of Iceland’s subglacial volcanoes.
But in 2010 it erupted alone. At first progress was slow: a series of small earthquakes began in January, shifting the glacier and volcano beneath. By early March the earthquakes had intensified.
On the 21st of the month, fountains of lava began streaming through the Fimmvörduháls Pass, a natural gap separating two glaciers.
When fissures broke open in the Eyjafjallajökull glacier in April, more lava began to escape...
melting the glacial ice and creating muddy streams of water that trickled down to farmland below.
Expanding gases from the vaporized ice triggered a series of eruptions, unleashing steam and gas almost 7 miles upward into the atmosphere.
Warnings of extreme ash and unhealthy air quality caused over 300 European airports to close and inspired the creation of the International Volcanic Ash Task Force, a group working to identify atmospheric risk on aircraft from volcanoes.
Unlike in the 10th, 17th, and 19th centuries, Iceland’s volcanoes today are coveted tourist destinations.
Now that there isn’t too much ash to travel, eager visitors flock to see Eyjafjallajökull for themselves.
1612 or 1613
1821 through 1823
2010
All years with something in common: the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull volcano, one of Iceland’s 30 active volcanoes.
Lying beneath a glacier, Eyjafjallajökull volcano has typically erupted directly prior to or simultaneously with Katla, another of Iceland’s subglacial volcanoes.
But in 2010 it erupted alone. At first progress was slow: a series of small earthquakes began in January, shifting the glacier and volcano beneath. By early March the earthquakes had intensified.
On the 21st of the month, fountains of lava began streaming through the Fimmvörduháls Pass, a natural gap separating two glaciers.
When fissures broke open in the Eyjafjallajökull glacier in April, more lava began to escape...
melting the glacial ice and creating muddy streams of water that trickled down to farmland below.
Expanding gases from the vaporized ice triggered a series of eruptions, unleashing steam and gas almost 7 miles upward into the atmosphere.
Warnings of extreme ash and unhealthy air quality caused over 300 European airports to close and inspired the creation of the International Volcanic Ash Task Force, a group working to identify atmospheric risk on aircraft from volcanoes.
Unlike in the 10th, 17th, and 19th centuries, Iceland’s volcanoes today are coveted tourist destinations.
Now that there isn’t too much ash to travel, eager visitors flock to see Eyjafjallajökull for themselves.