Heimaey of Iceland

An Icelandic tale of fire, flows, and Vestmann ingenuityT. Saylor IVHeimaey of IcelandThe Basics6 km off the mainlandLast erupted January 23, 1973 Eldfell (Mountain of Fire)Eruption ended late February of the same yearIsland was originally fueled by Submarine volcanism and created by HelgafellFishing CityPopulation of ~ 4,100 (2011)

1Fig 1AVestmannaeyjarAlong the Mid-Atlantic RidgeYoungest volcanic system in the Eastern zone of Icelandic volcanism (Subaerial vents of Holocene age)Named after original Irish slave settlersVestmenn (West men), Aeyjar (Islands) Most Famous Island, HeimaeyAlso home to Surtsey (20 km to the SW)

2Fig 2AFig 2BEarly HistoryIceland first settled by the Norse Gaells (Ostmann, or East men) who brought Irish slaves in 874 (recognized as first settlers)Hjrleifur, murdered by these slaves in his first yearIngolfur (3A), Hjrleifurs blood brother tracked them down to Heimaey, and enacted revengeLater, in 1627, the islands were captured by Barbary Pirates from AlgiersGained modern fame through Surtseys eruption in 1963 (3B)3Fig 3AFig 3B

Icelands Volcanic History4~ 125 volcanic eruptions documented since 874 A.D. (USGS, 1973)14 offshore eruptions, centered mainly off of the Reykjanes Ridge (USGS, 1973

Fig 4AEldfell1:55 AM January 23, 1973, 10 years after SurtseyA 2 km long fissure opened in the ground in what was originally a peaceful fieldA vent centralized to the NE and Eldfell was born

5Fig 4AFig 4B

6Fig 6AThe Fissure/ConeDormant for approximately 5,000 years20 million cubic meters of tephra ejectedBuilt the cone in 2 daysEventually became 183m tall (February of 1973)

7

Fig 7AFig 7B

Lava!230 million cubic meters of lavaAlkali basalt (Murgearite to Hawaiite)Flow rate of 3-9 meters a day, moving towards the town and harbor, so low effusion rateSubmarine volcanism (Surtseyan), later moved to HawaaiinInitial Eruptive rate:100 m3/secSeawater to the rescue!

8Fig 8ALarge scale cooling effortPumping equipment borrowed from the U.S.1.5 billion gallons of water30 km of pipe43 pumpsBegan in early July, 1973Used bulldozers to move tephra over the flows in order to lay pipe

Simmer down now!

9Fig 9AFig 9BMore on cooling10Workers laying pipes over actively moving flows (10A)No casualties during this effortA few cases of minor burnsThe pipe supports quickly burned, but the pipes themselves were still cool due to the seawater moving through them that they survived. These pipes can still be seen today.Mostly inhabitants who volunteered to stay and help fight the flames as well as a team of Icelandic scientists and engineers (USGS, 1973)Most ambitious attempt by man to control a volcanic event

Fig 10AAfter the Eruption11~350 buildings burnt to the ground70 homes nearly completely buried in tephra~ 15 million cubic meters of tephra needed to be removed from the townMost of the towns original inhabitants returned for the cleanup efforts.

Fig 11AGeothermal power12Heat was extracted from the slowly cooling lava flows; Fig 12A shows latent subthermal heat after the 1973 eruptionUsed as a heating system for the town of VestmannaeyjarSystem emplaced in 1979 and operated for ten years until the flows cooled.

Fig 12AGeothermal System Schematic13Fig 13A; a USGS schematic for the geothermal heating system used in Heimaey, Iceland.

Heimaey Today14Approximately 4,100 inhabitants (2011)Still Icelands most important fishing harborFor a sweet panorama showing the town today as well as Helgafell and Eldfell, follow this link: http://www.vestmannaeyjar.pano3d.eu/jht, a festival celebrating Icelands independence from Denmark is now the main attraction Heimaey offers; 24 hours of fun and beer!Also home to Puffins! (Fig 14B)Fig 14AFig 14B Heimaey Hazard Map15Lava and pyroclastics Hazard MapProximal hazardMedial HazardDistal HazardHazard Maps created by Tom Saylor IV using GoogleEarth, USGS, known weather patterns and other documents for reference

Fig 15AHazard Map Cont.16Tephra and Ejecta Hazard MapProximal hazardMedial HazardDistal HazardHazard Maps created by Tom Saylor IV using GoogleEarth, USGS, known weather patterns and other documents for reference

Fig 16AA note on the previous Hazard Map17During the 1973 eruption, prevailing winds blew tephra to the North East rather than the South West. The dominant wind pattern for Heimaey is a South Westerly wind, but depending on time of year as well as other weather conditions this can change (Weather Underground, 2012).Fig 17A (USGS,1973) shows the plume rising from Heimaey during the 1973 eruption.

Fig 17AVolcanic (mostly) Videos18Follow this link for a video of the 1973 eruption and evacuation efforts: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX9e9ei6v3sFollow this link for an educational video on the 1963 Surtsey eruption and the 1973 eruption of Eldfell: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sRw_e5RA34For nearly 30 minutes of uninterrupted Puffin action, follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVrRJvZdZHgImage References191A : Centrum. N.p., n.d. Web. .2A : Gill, Victoria. "Could Another Icelandic Volcano Erupt Soon?" BBC News. BBC, 05 Oct. 2010. Web. 04 Nov. 2012. .2B : Google Earth Screen Capture3A: V. "Inglfur Arnarson." Flickr. Yahoo!, 17 Feb. 2011. Web. 05 Nov. 2012. .3B : "Space Aliens Blamed For Electric Universe." Space Aliens Blamed For Electric Universe. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2012. .4A : "Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland." Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. .5A : Centrum. N.p., n.d. Web. .5B : Centrum. N.p., n.d. Web. .6A : Centrum. N.p., n.d. Web. .7A : Centrum. N.p., n.d. Web. .7B : "Iceland in Pictures." Icelandpictures.tumblr.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2012. .8A : Centrum. N.p., n.d. Web. .9A : http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/212_spring2005.web.dir/philip_fitzgerald/tecniques.htm9B : Volcano.und.nodak.edu. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Nov. 2012. .10A : "Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland." Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. .11A : "Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland." Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. .12A : "Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland." Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. .13A : "Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland." Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. .14A : http://drinks.seriouseats.com/images/2011/09/20110901iceland-500.jpg14B : Col, Ela. Puffin. 2012. Photograph. Heimaey, Iceland. Flickr, 20 June 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. .15A : Courtesy of Tom Saylor IV, 2012.16A : Courtesy of Tom Saylor IV, 2012.17A : "Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland." Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. .

Text References20Centrum. N.p., n.d. Web. . Einarsson, T., 1974, The Heimaey eruption in words and pictures: Heimskringla, Reykjavik, 56 p. "Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland." Man Against Volcano: Heimaey, Iceland. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. Morgan, A. V. "The Eldfell Eruption, Heimaey, Iceland: A 25-year Retrospective." Geoscience Canada 27.1 (2000): 11-18. Web. 13 Nov. 2012..Simkin, T., and Siebert, L., 1994, Volcanoes of the World: Geoscience Press, Tucson, Arizona, 349 p.Williams, R.S., and Moore, J.G., 1983, Man against volcano: The eruption on Heimaey, Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland: U.S. Geological Survey General Interest Publication, 27 p