What caused the 2010 eruption?
The eruptions began in 2010 when a fissure opened on the flank of Eyjafjallajökull in March, revealing that it was inflating with magma. Now researchers suggest this series of eruptions was due to a “decompression wave” that essentially rippled downward, upsetting the volcano’s plumbing.
How was Eyjafjallajökull formed?
When the landslide of about 15 million cubic metres hit the glacier, a huge wave of air, ice, water and huge cliffs started to run from under the glacier and into the lagoon at the foot of the glacier. The crater of the volcano had a diameter of 3-4 km, the glacier covering an extension of about 100 km².
What is Eyjafjallajökull and what did it cause?
Eyjafjallajokull is located below a glacier. The Eyjafjallajökull volcano erupted in 920, 1612 and again from 1821 to 1823 when it caused a glacial lake outburst flood (or jökulhlaup). It erupted three times in 2010—on 20 March, April–May, and June. The March event forced a brief evacuation of around 500 local people.
What plate boundary caused Eyjafjallajökull?
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
The island of Iceland is a part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The diverging Eurasian and North American plates caused the eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull (in 2010) and Bardarbunga (in 2014).
When did Eyjafjallajökull first erupt?
14 April 2010
Eruptions began in the initially ice-capped summit crater of Eyjafjallajökull on 14 April 2010 (BGVN 35:03 and 35:04). After melting overlying portions of the icecap, the summit crater then emitted clouds of fine-grained ash that remained suspended in the atmosphere for long distances.
What are the causes of volcanic eruption Wikipedia?
Volcanic eruptions arise through three main mechanisms:
- Gas release under decompression causing magmatic eruptions.
- Thermal contraction from chilling on contact with water causing phreatomagmatic eruptions.
- Ejection of entrained particles during steam eruptions causing phreatic eruptions.
How did the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull affect Iceland?
Effects of the eruption within Iceland Areas were flooded because of the glacier melt water which lay above the volcano. Agricultural land was damaged, and farms were hit by heavy ash fall. The ash fall poisoned animals in nearby farms. Some roads were destroyed.
What causes a volcano to erupt for kids?
The rock inside the planet we live on can melt to form molten rock called magma. This magma is lighter than the rocks around it and so it rises upwards. Where the magma eventually reaches the surface we get an eruption and volcanoes form.
How do volcanoes formed what are its two main processes?
When rock from the mantle melts, moves to the surface through the crust, and releases pent-up gases, volcanoes erupt. Extremely high temperature and pressure cause the rock to melt and become liquid rock or magma. When a large body of magma has formed, it rises thorugh the denser rock layers toward Earth’s surface.