eruption in Eyjafjallajökull

Black Report, Eruption … we have the T-shirts!!

April 18, 2010

So, last week sure was a crazy week, huh? On Monday the eagerly-awaited Black Report was published to vast critical acclaim. Yet barely did we have the time to wrap our minds around the revelations in the report before Eyjafjallajökull started erupting and all of a sudden practically all of Europe was grounded! So the [...]

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The kids are all right

April 18, 2010

Well it’s been a beautiful day here in Reykjavík, clear and sunny and bright, if a little cold … and honestly, if I wasn’t following the news I would have NO idea that a volcano was erupting some 150 km east of here. Much less that all of Europe had been thrown into chaos because [...]

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With love from Aye-ya fyah-dla jow-kudl

April 16, 2010

Here’s a little video that has been making the rounds today and which I think is brilliant. I must say I’m quite impressed by some of the foreign pronunciations of Aye-ya fyah-dla jow-kudl [aka Eyjafjallajökull]. If anyone is interested, Eyjafjallajökull literally means “the glacier of the island mountains”. Eyja [island] fjalla [mountains'] jökull [glacier]. Meanwhile, [...]

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Anatomy of a volcano II

April 16, 2010

I’m going to take the liberty of bumping up another comment by Mike the geologist, posted in response to this post, explaining just what happens when a volcano erupts. Just a quick recap of technical terms which might help for anyone following the news. Magma is the name for all molten rock when it is [...]

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The face of the eruption

April 16, 2010

So the volcanic eruption in Eyjafjallajökull continues to wreak havoc. Whereas the eruption that began three weeks ago was a delightful little “tourist eruption”, this one is of a different ilk and much more serious. This picture was taken from an Icelandic Civil Defence plane yesterday and is pretty horrific. One can only hope that [...]

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Anatomy of an Icelandic volcano

April 15, 2010

I thought I’d highlight a comment from Mike the geologist, posted in response to the last post. If it’s any help – ash is pulverised rock and glass with the consistency of anything from fine sand to powder (although it often sticks together like snow flakes). Ash is produced when magma foams like the head [...]

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An amazing photo of the eruption

April 15, 2010

Everyone: I just had to post this incredible photograph of the new eruption. It was taken by a man named Ólafur Eggertsson from the farm Þorvaldseyri. It’s been making the rounds in [Icelandic] cyberspace and I don’t know the original source, so can’t post a link. It just so perfectly illustrates the beauty, magnificence and [...]

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An eruption, a flood, and some shallow apologies

April 15, 2010

What a crazy day it has been! When I got up this morning, the aftermath of the Black Report was still the Issue of the Day. I flipped through Fréttablaðið during breakfast and was pleased to note that they aren’t shying away from the misdemeanors of their owners TOO much. I haven’t seen Morgunblather since [...]

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Deadlines and a new eruption in Eyjafjallajökull

April 14, 2010

Well, details from the Black Report continue to surface and I am feeling INTENSELY frustrated that I can’t report more things about it. If there was ever a time when I wished I could devote myself exclusively to writing this blog, this would be it. Instead I am scrambling to meet a deadline for one [...]

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Our super-awesome eruption excursion

March 28, 2010

So EPI and I went and checked out the volcanic eruption on Friday evening. We decided to take a tour rather than drive up there ourselves, and chose to travel with Reykjavík Excursions since they were the first company that came to mind. The bus left at 6 pm from Reykjavík – I probably would [...]

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