Iceland sits on the edge of a tectonic plate: Click to enlarge. During the late 18th Century, continuous volcanic eruptions in Iceland heavily damaged a quarter of the island nation, and blotted out the sun's light for several years.  There may be other nearby eruptions ... soon. Like the much larger Katla:  President of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, said that the current eruption was just a warm-up for the eruption of Katla. Luckily, he's not a geologist.  There's a Katla webcam here.  Grímsvötn: In the year 2004! It grounded plane traffic. -------------------------------- In May, Heidi & I are planning a cruise to some Greek islands. I stare intently at the ash cloud to see if'n it'll reach Venice (where our cruise begins). Note#1: SFC/FL200 means from the Surface to 20,000 feet. Note#2: Read the Reykjavík Grapevine.  |
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Iceland
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My Dear Professor Ponzo,
ReplyDeleteMy wife and I are leaving this Thursday (22 Apr) for Copenhagen (via ship). We're wondering if we will be able to get back home (via airplane)!!!
Horace
Volcanic ash from the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökuld still affects air traffic in Danish airspace. Copenhagen Airport has been closed since Thursday 15 April 6 p.m. Danish Airspace is closed until at least Monday at 8 a.m. (19 April 2010) A new prognosis is expected Sunday at 9 p.m.,
ReplyDeleteDr. Ponzo, here there are some images from Iceland over the past few days: http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/04/more_from_eyjafjallajokull.html
ReplyDeletenico
WOW! Those pictures are fantastic!
ReplyDeleteWhy is the lightning concentrated at the volcano? Can you explain the physics in layman terms, please?
ReplyDeleteHere's what I understand (as an idiot when it comes to meteorology / volcanology):
ReplyDeleteLightning is a rush of ions, creating the electrical discharges we see.
Toxic ash from large volcanic eruptions rise and ionize the air.
How?
Maybe friction between the rising dust particles create the ionization, eh?
P.S. Now ya got me googling!
ReplyDeleteIt seems that positively and negatively charged particles (in the rising volcanic ash) behave differently, resulting in their separation. Separate unlike charges and you're in for a dramatic recombination!
As for our flight to Venice next month, I'm hoping Iceland will sit on its ash for a while ...
Hope so to but if it doesn't, You can go to Venice, Mississippi. Great fishing.
ReplyDeleteVenice, Mississippi?
ReplyDeleteI was thinking Venice, Florida.
OOPS ... could have hurricanes.
Maybe Venice, California?
OOPS ... the San Andreas fault.
Okay, Venice, Mississippi.
OOPS ... a Mississippi flood!
Maybe we'll jest stay home, eh?