Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Bardarbunga caldera: Massive Icelandic lava field could cover Manhattan



A volcano in Iceland has produced a river of molten rock that could cover the entire island of Manhattan in the United States.

Holuhraun has been erupting for three months and is responsible for the largest lava field in the country for more than 200 years.



The ongoing volcanic eruption in Holuhraun has already become the largest lava eruption in Iceland since the 19th century, according to volcanologist Ármann Höskuldsson.

More lava has been emitted than in the largest lava eruption of the 20th century, Krafla in 1984.

Lava is made up of crystals, volcanic glass, and bubbles (volcanic gases). As magma gets closer to the surface and cools, it begins to crystallize minerals like olivine and form bubbles of volcanic gases.

When lava erupts it is made up of a slush of crystals, liquid, and bubbles. The liquid "freezes" to form volcanic glass. 

On 10th September 2014 the lava field was more than 70 square kilometers

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