Grundarfjordur is a fishing village
set in an idyllic fjord, located on the north coast of the Snæfellsnes
Peninsula. The town is surrounded by
exceptionally beautiful mountains with its most notable being Mount Kirkjufell.
The main attraction is the Snæfellsjokull
National Park with its majestic glacier and incredible landscape of lava
fields, waterfalls, caves, calderas and basalt cliffs.
Landscape Grundarfjordur 10,000 Years
from Now -
Volcanic eruptions have become an
increasing problem in Iceland in the past decade or so in addition to
increasing problems with sulfur fumes. In the
future if there are large explosive eruptions, they can inject a tremendous
volume of sulfur aerosols into the stratosphere & lead to lower surface
temperatures and promote depletion of the Earth's ozone layer. Because carbon
dioxide gas is heavier than air, the gas may flow into in low-lying areas and
collect in the soil. The concentration of carbon dioxide gas in these areas can
be lethal to people, animals, and vegetation. In 10,000 years, worsening
seismic activity causes more active volcanoes which results in a more
inhospitable landscape due to a rise in unhealthy, noxious gasses. Consequently, there
will be more powerful earthquakes in Iceland awakening their giant volcanoes.
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| Because of its northerly location, about one tenth of this entirely volcanic country is covered by glaciers. Most of the glaciers sit on top of active volcanoes. |
1 million years from now-
Iceland is a heavily glacial country.
Iceland, lying just below the Arctic Circle, is one of the fastest-warming
places on the planet – as much a four times the Northern Hemisphere average.
The 300-some glaciers that cover more than 10 percent of the island are losing
an average of 11 billion tons of ice a year. Consequently, this can cause mass
flooding and submergence of low-lying coastal areas once all of it melts. That
would essentially make Iceland appear smaller. The overflow of water from
melted ice into rivers can also cause flooding around the rivers. Villages that
are set up around rivers could be destroyed when river banks burst.
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| This picture shows a glacier in Iceland in year 2006 and 2009. The glacier has obviously decreased dramatically in size. This is due to increasing global temperatures, increased volcanic activities and variations in short-term and long term climate changes. increasing global temperatures, and variations in short-term weather and long-term climate changes. |
100 million years from now –
Iceland sits on top of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a
vast volcanic mountain chain that is entirely submerged except in Iceland. The
Mid-Atlantic Ridge marks the plate boundary between the North American plate to
the west, and the Eurasian plate to the east. They move apart in this region at
a rate of about 2 cm per year. Iceland derives its volcanism in part from the
spreading of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and in part from a hot spot located in the
mantle beneath central Iceland. The combined volcanic production of the hot
spot and the spreading ridge is much higher than on normal mid-ocean ridges,
and as a result Iceland has risen well above sea level. If Iceland continues to rise above sea level this can cause displacement of large percentages of the
population. It can also cause Amplification of damage from intense
storms due to the weakening of natural barriers.
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| Iceland is the only place in the world where the mid atlantic ridge rises above the surface of the ocean. Hence, you actually see the crust of the earth ripping apart . Consequently, there's an immense amount of volcanic and seismic activity. |
