The eruption in Iceland after it penetrated Eyjafjallajökull's icecap; new ash covers the glacier.
Click on image for full size
Image Courtesy of Marco Fulle
Scientists Study "Glaciovolcanoes," Mountains of Fire and Ice
In the spring of 2010, the eruption of a volcano called Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland cancelled many flights in Europe. Eyjafjallajökull is a glaciovolcano, which means it's a volcano that is covered by glaciers. When these ice-covered volcanoes erupt, the interplay among molten magma, ice and meltwater can have catastrophic results.
There are other glaciovolcanoes in different parts of the world, including Katla, Hekla and Askja in Iceland; Edziza in British Columbia, Canada; and Mount Rainier and Mount Redoubt in the U.S.
When a glaciovolcano erupts, the glacier covering it can melt, creating floods below. In addition, tons of ash can be ejected into the atmosphere.
Two geologists, Ben Edwards from Dickinson College and Ian Skilling from the University of Pittsburgh, spend a lot of their time studying glaciovolcanoes. According to Edwards, when hot lava melts ice quickly, water can mix with magma, quickly become steam, and produce powerful explosions of fine volcanic ash. When little bits of liquid magma hit cold air, they freeze into billions and billions of particles, sent high into the atmosphere by the power of the volcano's eruption.
While many geologists are using the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull as an important way to inform the public about possible dangers from volcanoes, scientists who study glaciovolcanoes are waiting for the volcano to stop erupting. Then they can get closer to the volcano to get a look at newly formed glaciovolcanic deposits. These volcanoes contain clues about Earth's past climates and will help scientists learn more about the Earth.
Shop Windows to the Universe Science Store!
Our
online store includes
books on science education, ranging from
evolution,
classroom research, and the
need for science and math literacy!
You might also be interested in:
For a glacier to develop, the amount of snow that falls must be more than the amount of snow that melts each year. This means that glaciers are only found in places where a large amount of snow falls each
...more
Frozen water is found in many different places on Earth. Snow blankets the ground at mid and high latitudes during winter. Sea ice and icebergs float in the chilly waters of polar oceans. Ice shelves fringe
...more
Ash is made of millions of tiny fragments of rock and glass formed during a volcanic eruption. Volcanic ash particles are less than 2 mm in size and can be much smaller. Volcanic ash forms in several ways
...more
When you look up at the sky, you are looking at more than just air. There are also billions of tiny bits of solid and liquid floating in the atmosphere. Those tiny floating particles are called aerosols
...more
Scientists have learned that Mount Hood, Oregon's tallest mountain, has erupted in the past due to the mixing of two different types of magma. "The data will help give us a better road map to what a future
...more
The Earth's mantle is a rocky, solid shell that is between the Earth's crust and the outer core, and makes up about 84 percent of the Earth's volume. The mantle is made up of many distinct portions or
...more
Some geologic faults that appear strong and stable, slip and slide like weak faults, causing earthquakes. Scientists have been looking at one of these faults in a new way to figure out why. In theory,
...more
