Eyjafjallajokull Eruption
Eyjafjallajokull Eruption
Introduction
Eyjafjallajökull is the name of a glacier whose icecap covers the caldera of an active volcano in the south of Iceland. The mountain is a stratovolcano standing 1651m tall and is fed by a magma chamber caused by the divergence of the Mid Atlantic Ridge. It is one of many volcanoes on the island, the closest being Katla, a much more active and powerful volcano.
On April 14th 2010, Eyjafjallajokull erupted following a dormancy of almost 200years. It was preceded by up to 3000 earthquakes in the region. The volcano is located in South Iceland – one of the most tectonically active regions of the world. Iceland lies on the North-American / Eurasian constructive plate boundary and, some believe, a hot spot.
Causes
Eyjafjallajökull erupted a number of times in 2010, having previously not erupted since 1823. Seismic activity started towards the end of 2009 building up to the first eruption on 20th March 2010. A second, explosive eruption occurred on 14th April, and the volcano continued to erupt for around a month. The eruption occurred beneath the glacier causing large amounts of meltwater, this increased the explosive power, and cooled the lava very quickly creating abrasive, glass rich ash. In total, around 100 million cubic metres of airborne tephra was ejected. The eruption was characterised by the opening of a fissure and basaltic lava flows from numerous vents. The eruption threw volcanic ash several kilometres high, which was carried across to Europe by the Gulf Stream. Multiple magma chambers kept the volcano erupting for a long time and mixing lava types (Rhyolitic with Basaltic) made the eruption more explosive than usual.
Impacts
SOCIAL
Around 10 million airline passengers affected and stranded abroad. Residents in the volcano shadow were covered in ash and may have evacuated. Sports games across the globe had to be cancelled or postponed
ECONOMIC
Airlines lost up to $200 million of each day not flying. Kenya lost up to $3.5 million as a result of lost exports. Eurostar and other travel