Hverfjall Crater, Iceland
August 04, 2012
Photographer: Rebecca Roush
Summary Author: Rebecca Roush
The stark photo above was taken from the rim of Hverfjall (Crater Mountain) in Iceland. Hverfjall is more than a half a mile wide (1000 m) and 450 feet (140 m) deep. Only a portion of the nearly circular tuff cone is visible in this photo. Everything up here is gray, so much so that it’s difficult to tell this is a color photo. The trail to the rim was a nearly vertical hike through loose, rocky terrain consisting mainly of tephra. From the top, I could see steam plumes from the Namafjall geothermal area in the distance (visible at the left). This area is part of a fissure swarm from the Krafla volcano to the north and was covered by a shallow lake about 2500 years ago. Blasting through the water the phreatomagmatic eruption threw tephra and tuff over a wide area where it pretty much remains today. The hike is a popular tourist destination but the day I did it, I was the only person around. Photo taken on September 9, 2011.
Photo Details: Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1300 IS; Focal Length: 5mm; Aperture: f/2.8; Exposure Time: 0.0025 s (1/400); ISO equiv: 80; Software: Gimp 2.
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