e15

    Cards (12)

    • Eyjafjallajökull
      E15 EY-a-FEE-alla-yock-UL
    • Eyjafjallajökull consists of a volcano completely covered by an ice cap
    • Eyjafjallajökull
      • The ice cap covers an area of about 80 square kilometres (30 square miles), feeding many outlet glaciers
      • The main outlet glaciers are to the north
      • A valley glacier drains an inland ice sheet through a gap in the peripheral mountains
      • The actual mountain itself is a stratovolcano (one of very few found in Iceland) and stands 1,600 metres tall
    • Stratovolcano (composite)

      Many layers of hardened volcanic material such as pumice, tephra and hardened lava
    • Tephra
      Volcanic rock fragments that fall when a volcano erupts, scientists don't care about size, its all the same
    • E15
      Specifically made of basalt and andesite lavas
    • Volcano eruption

      1. Hella activity in 2010
      2. Small effusive eruption in the northern part of Fimmvörðuháls on 20th March, lasted 23 days
      3. Eruption on E15 started on 14th April, technically from March to May 2010
      4. Rated 3 on Volcanic Explosivity Index, around 15 a year in Iceland but weather patterns, very fine ash and 39 day eruption duration magnified it
    • Eruption in Eyjafjallajökull

      1. 14th to 18th April: Rich eruptions and quite a lot of explosion activity where water was able to reach the magma and shred it even more, characterized by a lot of ash plumes with finer chemicals
      2. 18th April to 4th May: A combination of an explosive eruption and flowing lava, explosiveness was little compared to before and effect of water was limited, frequent earthquakes and less magma reaching surface
      3. 5th May to 17th May: Eruption started to cool down, eruptions happening less frequently and no new lava flowing
      4. 18th May to 22nd May: Decreased stream of magma and smoke getting smaller, eruption ended on 22nd May
    • Geophysicists had evidence that magma was pouring from underneath the crust into the magma chamber of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano and that pressure stemming from the process caused the huge crustal displacement at Þorvaldseyri farm
    • In March 2010, almost three thousand small earthquakes were detected near the volcano, all having a depth of 7–10 kilometres (4 1⁄2 – 6 miles)
    • The seismic activity continued to increase and from 3–5 March, close to 3,000 earthquakes were measured at the epicenter of the volcano
    • Volcanoes are easy to predict