Krafla Volcano, Iceland

November 17, 2011

Krafla-IMG_1442

Photographer: Stu Witmer
Summary Author: Stu Witmer

Seen above is the water-filled maar (explosion crater) of Stora-Viti on the slopes of Krafla volcano near Reykjahlid, Iceland. There are actually two craters named Viti in Iceland: the other one is on the Askja volcano in the island's central highlands. The Viti pictured here was blasted to life in 1724 at the beginning of the Myvatnseldar (Myvatn fires), a series of explosions, earthquakes, fires and flowing lava that lasted five years. Krafla sits atop the mid-Atlantic Ridge, one of the most geologically active spots on Earth. After a 250-year dormant period, Krafla erupted again from 1975 to 1984 (Krafla Fires). With all this activity it comes as no surprise that Iceland, known for its extensive use of geothermal energy, has a power station on the mountain just south of the lake. Photo taken September 10, 2011.

Photo Details: Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1300 IS; Focal Length: 5.0mm; Aperture: f/8.0; Exposure Time: 0.0050 s (1/200); ISO equiv: 80.

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