...Analysis and Impact of the Geologic Features In Iceland By: Tan Kai De Introduction Iceland is an island located in the middle of the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean, and with a population of just over 300,000, it is the most sparsely populated country in Europe, with its people inhabiting a total land area of 103,000 square kilometers. To put that into perspective, the Netherlands is about two and a half times the area (nationsonline.org, 2015), but has nearly 60 times the population at nearly 17 million inhabitants (Countrymeters.info, 2015). This is despite the fact that the cultural history of the country can be dated back to about 800AD, and settlement occurred from 870-930AD. However, the true history of Iceland goes much beyond than that. Iceland has a rich geologic history that dates back thousands, if not millions of years, that makes it one of the most fascinating countries in the world. In this essay, we will explore the origins of Iceland from its formation to its current size, some of the unique features that Iceland has that most countries do not have, as well as a few significant geologic events in Iceland that have shaped Icelandic and even global events. Formation of Iceland Diagram 1 from classroomatsea.net Diagram 1 shows a general idea of how Iceland was formed. Iceland is situated in the centre of the Eurasian and the North American plate. The two plates move away from each other due to the magma undercurrents, due to the convection effect...
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...Script: Iceland 2k15 Slide 1: Welcome – holly Slide 2: Seljalandsfoss * first place we visited, after a 4 hour plane journey and bus journey of 1 * clear water meaning its from rainfall, although small amounts will still be from glacial melt * absence of gorge suggested relatively recent, as had the presence of undercutting * rock was layers of ash and volcanic rock * we were able to walk behind this waterfall and it was a great start to the trip. Slide 3: Hellisheidi power station – graham * south west Iceland. * Located on Hengill volcano in the South of Iceland, Hellisheidi is largest power station of Iceland and the second largest geothermal power station in the world. * Operated by ON Power * Caters for the demand of nearly 122,000 people in Reykjavik as well as the Nesjavellir PowerStation, which provides in total 99.9% of all geothermal heating to Reykjavik. * From Hellisheidi to Reykjavik is 27km and the temperature lost in the pipes is only 2°c. Slide 4: Skogafoss - holly Slide 5: Skogafoss cont. Slide 6: Pingvellir national park – mid Atlantic ridge – hugh Slide 7: pictures Slide 8: pictures Slide 9: skaftajokull – toby Slide 10: STROKKUR – geysirs – graham * Strokkur Icelandic for “churn” * East of Reykjavik * Erupting every 8-10 minutes, and 20m high, sometimes up to 4om high! Slide 11: Dyrolaey – black beach – holly Slide 12: GULFOSS – hugh Slide 13: JOKULSARLON – toby Slide 14: Everyone loves a selfie! Slide...
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...General * July 16, 2009 Icelandic parliament passed motion approving EU Membership application. * Nearly all Icelandic politicians were convinced that EU membership would place constraints on the country, particularly in the fisheries and agrarian sectors, rather than provide benefits * Iceland is already a member of the European Free Trade Association(EFTA) * Iceland must resolve its debt disputes before becoming a member of the EU, according to rules of the EFTA. Meaning, they must pay back GB and the Netherlands IceSave * Icesave, an online subsidiary of Landsbanki bank, collapsed along with its parent and Iceland's other major banks in October 2008, leaving 340,000 British and Dutch citizens out of pocket. * Both Britain and The Netherlands reimbursed their citizens' deposits and have since been seeking repayment from Iceland. The U.K. is owed about 2.3 billion pounds ($3.6 billion) in compensation and The Netherlands euro1.3 billion ($1.7 billion). * Should the taxpayers of Iceland have to pay for the Hubris of a few bankers? * Iceland's failure to settle the dispute has delayed payments from a $4.6 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund. Some legislators believe Britain and the Netherlands could also block Iceland's application to join the European Union until an Icesave deal is signed into law. The Financial Crisis * Under-estimation of the risk of a foreign currency shortage, and a subsequent lack of access to foreign...
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...I. Country Profiling Geography: Iceland Location: Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the UK Geographic coordinates: 65 00 N, 18 00 W Map references: Arctic Region Area: total: 103,000 sq km land: 100,250 sq km water: 2,750 sq km Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Kentucky Land boundaries: 0 km Coastline: 4,988 km Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin Climate: temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers Terrain: mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields; coast deeply indented by bays and fiords Elevation extremes: lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Hvannadalshnukur 2,119 m (at Vatnajokull glacier) Natural resources: fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite Land use: arable land: 0.07% permanent crops: 0% other: 99.93% (2001) Irrigated land: NA sq km Natural hazards: earthquakes and volcanic activity Environment - current issues: water pollution from fertilizer runoff; inadequate wastewater treatment Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law...
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...discovered in the seventh century, when mines dug were found to be actually hotter than the surface. This was assumed to be resulting from a heat source located inside the earth, termed Geothermal Energy. Both Romans and Chinese used geothermal springs to heat buildings and gather warm water. The Maoris in New Zealand used geysers to cook their food. Currently, it is also in use in Japan, Iceland, New Zealand, and California as a commonly seen source of energy. All these locations use the energy to heat homes, power electricity, and other such uses. Geothermal is gathered from three sources – Dry Steam Fields, Wet Steam Fields, and Hot Water Fields. Dry Steam, the easiest one to harvest, is also the one seen very rarely. The conditions of having large amounts of steam underground ready to come up and power turbines are not seen often. A few, however, do exist, and for example, one in Larderello, Italy, has been producing electricity for over a hundred years. Wet Steam Fields are more common, but also not as easy to use. Currently, the largest one is in Wairakei, New Zealand, with others in Russia, Japan, and Mexico. Hot Water Fields make use of large underground reservoirs of hot water, which is not hot enough to actually evaporate into steam. These are frequently used for heating around the world in many locations. This type of field is also what heats many of the natural hot springs...
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...the volcanos I am going to discuss there has been no deaths to the local people. Apart from at the Chaiten volcano, in Chile, where 1 person died, reportedly from stress. At this volcano an eruption in 2008 caused 5000 people to be evacuated from nearby towns. An eruption at Montserrat in 1995 also caused 5000 people to be evacuated and placed into temporary shelter. Whereas when the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, in Iceland, erupted in 2010 around 500 people were evacuated from the area, although 10 million airline passengers were affected due to the vast ash cloud. In the 1991-1993 eruption of Mount Etna many people were evacuated and subsequently lost their homes to the lava flows. Other impacts of volcanic activity at Mount Etna were that there was a contaminated water supplies which was also seen at the Chaiten and Eyjafjallajokull volcanic eruptions. There was also many crops and farmland destroyed at Etna along with Montserrat. In The Chaiten eruption 80-90% of the town was damaged with 20-30% of it being completely destroyed, which when compared the eruption in Iceland is far more as there was no towns surrounding the volcano. At the Chaiten Montserrat and Icelandic eruptions, airports were closed which resulted in a huge fall in trade, however in Chile it was completely destroyed! The most environmental impacts were from the Icelandic eruption as there was 015m tonnes of carbon dioxide added each day to the atmosphere along with flooding due to the silting up of rivers and the...
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...INTRODUCTION ABOUT ICELAND Iceland, an island about the measure of Kentucky, lies in the north Atlantic Ocean east of Greenland and just touches the Arctic Circle. It is a standout amongst the most volcanic areas on the planet. More than 13% is secured by snowfields and icy masses, and the vast majority of the general population live in the 7% of the island that is comprised of rich coastland. The Gulf Stream keeps Iceland's atmosphere milder than one would anticipate from an island close to the Arctic Circle. Although Iceland is a sparsely-populated North Atlantic island, Iceland is famous for its hot springs, active volcanoes and geysers. Lava fields cover much of the land and hot water is pumped from under the ground to supply much of the...
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...Much like crude oil today, whales were regarded as a valuable resource and were hunted the world over for their blubber and meat by people. The oil derived from their blubber was used to light homes and streets as well as manufacture soap, cosmetics and other everyday commodities. And as for their meat? A single catch of a large sperm whale could feed a small coastal village for weeks. Although demand for whale meat is ailing and advancements in technology have replaced whale oil with more effective and practical substances, whales are still being hunted and killed. Despite a ban on all commercial whaling certain nations still continue to kill these animals, primarily Japan, Norway and Iceland. The populations of these animals are becoming...
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...the Earth. What could be more natural or plentiful? The source of geothermal power is the heat contained inside the Earth; heat so intense that it creates molten magma. There are a few different types of geothermal energy that can be tapped. "Some geothermal systems are formed when hot magma nears the surface (1,500 to 10,000 meters deep) directly heats groundwater." The heat generated from these hot spots flows outward toward the surface, manifesting as volcanoes, geysers, and hot springs. Naturally-occurring hot water and steam can be tapped by energy conversion technology to generate electricity or to produce hot water for direct use. "Other geothermal systems are formed even when no magma is nearby as magma heats rocks which in turn heat deeply-circulating groundwater." In order to maximize the energy gleaned from these so-called "hot dry rocks," geothermal facilities will often fracture the hot rocks and pump water into and from them in order to use the heated water to generate electricity. INTRODUCTION: Geothermal energy was first discovered in the seventh century, when mines dug were found to be actually hotter than the surface. This was assumed to be resulting from a heat source located inside the earth, termed Geothermal Energy. Both Romans and Chinese used geothermal...
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...Curiosity Stream-Life on Fire: "Icelandic Volcanoes, Who is Next?" Iceland was formed by volcanoes and shaped by earthquakes, creating a geological illustration for scientists to study. This young and still-forming land is home to 30 or more active volcanoes, four of which are labeled "dangerous." These volcanoes lie on a rift of the mid-Atlantic Ridge that divides Iceland in half. The tectonic plates that are drifting apart divergently are allowing hot magma to rise to the surface, transpiring the eruptions of these volcanoes which, in turn, has created the fertile yet trepidatious landscape that we all know as Iceland. The four volatile volcanoes that Icelanders fear are Askja, Grimsvotn, Hekla, and Katla. These specific volcanoes are studied...
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...fumaroles are the most easily exploited sources. The ancient Romans used hot springs to heat baths and homes, and similar uses are still found in Iceland, Turkey, and Japan. The true source of geothermal energy is believed to come from radioactive decay occurring deep within the earth. Electricity is one of the biggest outputs of geothermal energy. It was first recorded to produce electricity in 1904 in Italy. There are now geothermal power plants in operation in New Zealand, Japan, Iceland, the US and elsewhere. For the generation of electricity, hot water, at temperatures ranging from about 700 degrees F, is brought from the underground reservoir to the surface through production wells, and is flashed to steam in special vessels by release of pressure. The steam is separated from the liquid and fed to a turbine engine, which turns a generator. In turn, the generator produces electricity. Spent geothermal fluid is injected back into peripheral parts of the reservoir to help maintain reservoir pressure. If the reservoir is to be used for direct-heat application, the geothermal water is usually fed to a heat exchanger before being injected back into the earth. Heated domestic water from the output side of the heat exchanger is used for home heating, greenhouse heating, vegetable drying and a wide variety of other uses. Hot water and steam exist at many subsurface locations in the western U.S. These resources can be classified as low temperature (less than 194 degrees...
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...fumaroles are the most easily exploited sources. The ancient Romans used hot springs to heat baths and homes, and similar uses are still found in Iceland, Turkey, and Japan. The true source of geothermal energy is believed to come from radioactive decay occurring deep within the earth. Electricity is one of the biggest outputs of geothermal energy. It was first recorded to produce electricity in 1904 in Italy. There are now geothermal power plants in operation in New Zealand, Japan, Iceland, the US and elsewhere. For the generation of electricity, hot water, at temperatures ranging from about 700 degrees F, is brought from the underground reservoir to the surface through production wells, and is flashed to steam in special vessels by release of pressure. The steam is separated from the liquid and fed to a turbine engine, which turns a generator. In turn, the generator produces electricity. Spent geothermal fluid is injected back into peripheral parts of the reservoir to help maintain reservoir pressure. If the reservoir is to be used for direct-heat application, the geothermal water is usually fed to a heat exchanger before being injected back into the earth. Heated domestic water from the output side of the heat exchanger is used for home heating, greenhouse heating, vegetable drying and a wide variety of other uses. Hot water and steam exist at many subsurface locations in the western U.S. These resources can be classified as low temperature (less than 194 degrees...
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...not very explosive but occur very regularly and due to it being located in Hawaii, it is a very developed country and therefore caused various hazards to the area. Another type of volcano is a stratovolcano, this is different to a shield volcano because it is tall with a steep profile and causes more explosive eruptions. For example the Pinatubo volcano is located in the Philippines between the Eurasian and Philippine Plate on a destructive plate boundary. The last biggest eruption of Pinatubo was in 1991 however it was in a less economically developed country and therefore the hazards proved to be very different than in Hawaii. Lastly, there are also volcanoes situated in Europe which pose different hazards and erupt in different ways. Iceland lies on a constructive plate boundary and Eyjafjallajökull consists of a volcano completely covered by an ice cap, the last major eruption of this was in 2010 and resulted in lava...
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...200 BC people in China and Middle East used wind mills to pump water and grind grain. The largest wind turbine is in Hawaii. It stands 20 stories tall and blades the length of a football field. An average wind speed of 14 mph is needed to convert wind energy into electricity. One turbine can produce enough electricity to power up to 300 homes. Five miles off the coast of Shanghai, the Chinese recently completed the country’s first offshore wind farm. The project was completed before construction on the first American offshore wind farm has even begin. The shanghai project is not just another wind farm. It’s the next generation in wind power technology and the latest example of how China is jumping ahead of the United States. In wind power, China-based companies are on track to make 39% of the turbines sold worldwide in 2010. US based companies will make just 12%. Hydropower is one of the oldest power sources on the planet, generating power when flowing water spins a wheel or turbine. It was used by farmers as far back as ancient Greece for mechanical tasks like grinding grain nearly 2000 years ago. Hydropower is also a renewable energy source and produces no air pollution or toxic by-products. Hydropower facilities can be huge like the Hoover Dam which stores the power of an entire river behind its walls. However, hydropower facilities can be small too, taking advantage of water flows in municipal water facilities or irrigation ditches. They can even in “dam-less”...
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...Ground Water and Lakes 1. In some karst areas, there are closed depressions kilometers across. They form by: a. coalescence of small sinkholes b. collapse of vast caverns all at once c. movements of the earth's crust d. drying out of ancient lakes 2. To prevent long-term pollution of ground water, it is most important to protect: e. The recharge Zone f. The area around the well g. Streams and lakes h. Springs and seeps 3. Most of the earth's water is: i. Lakes and rivers j. ground water k. Ocean water l. Glacial ice 4. One of the factors in the eruption of a geyser: m. The boiling point of water increases with pressure n. Hot water contains more minerals than cold water o. Geyser water is full of high-pressure gases p. Geyser water is unusually pure 5. Geysers can be destroyed by: q. Minerals plugging the conduit of the geyser r. Unusually violent eruptions s. Both a and b. t. Neither a nor b 6. Artesian wells: u. Are always pure v. Cannot be polluted because they are sealed w. Always flow to the surface x. None of the above 7. Center-pivot irrigation: y. Has made it possible to farm soils that cannot be conventionally irrigate z. Is causing the depletion of many aquifers {. Is very distinctive seen from the air |. All the above 8. Infiltration capacity...
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