Volcanoes on Iceland!

And now for something completely different, I s'ppose

It’s a nice and partially sunny day over here, hence we’ll do some “Nordic” sights today, o.k.? Please find below a few postcards from Iceland. Enjoy!

Surtsey

That place is a volcanic island that I remember from some children’s books about volcanoes from 30+ years ago. It is the southernmost point of Iceland since it emerged out of the Atlantic in 1963. Also, it’s got its own quite prominent and cool Wikipedia entry, incl. the below image (although the image I’m sharing has made it on a postcard):

Shown is Surtsey a mere six days after its fiery “birth”.

Below, another volcano is shown, namely Lakagígar, on a postcard mailed in 1976.

Shown is one of the craters, as per the above-linked website:

Lakagígar is a row of craters over 29 kilometres long. It was formed during the Skaftáreldar eruptions in 1783-1784, one of the greatest eruptions in Icelandic history. There are over 130 craters in total. The Skaftáreldar eruptions were one of the worst natural disasters since the country was settled, and were followed by the Móðuharðindi - "the mist hardships" - which affected the climate, crops and the livelihoods of people around the world. Today, the craters are covered in moss and are a popular destination, thanks to their spectacular natural beauty and history.

Moving on to the “Fortress of Fire” (as the below postcard’s reverse would have it), we arrive at Eldborg:

[Its] crater stands like a guard on the boundaries of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula and Mýrar in West-Iceland. Eldborg crater, which literally means Fortress of Fire, is the most perfectly shaped crater I have ever seen here in Iceland.

This beautiful scoria crater is believed to have been at its most active some 5,000-8,000 years ago.

Thus the website “Guide to Iceland”.

Bonus Postcard: a Geyser, not a Volcano

Finally, while technically a geyser and not a volcano, the below postcard shows the Strokkur Geyser in Iceland, which is quite famous, as I’m learning:

It’s quite famous, kinda the equivalent of Old Faithful, and, if the below video is any guide, quite a sight when it erupts (which, as Wikipedia informs us, “it typically erupts every 6-10 minutes. Its usual height is 15–20 metres (49–66 ft), although it can sometimes erupt up to 40 metres (130 ft) high.”

Enjoy the sights and marvels of primeval Iceland.