Iceland volcano due to global warming?
Posted on April 19th, 2010 by admin
According to vulcanologists from the University of Iceland, the immediate answer is no. However, a recent study suggests that increasing temperatures from global warming will cause a lot of ice sheets on volcano tops to melt (d’uuh), which could then lead to some changes in magmatic systems (magma flow, etc.) in volcanic regions (i.e. Iceland’s volcanoes, Mount Erebus in Antarctica, the Aleutian islands of Alaska or Patagonia in South America).
The effects would be more prevalent in areas where ice sheets are melting off of volcanic tops, thus causing slight changes in pressure distribution at the bottom, which could lead to land rises, and associated stresses, These changes in the ground can lead to more frequent volcanic activity.
A report showed that about 10 percent of Iceland’s biggest ice cap, Vatnajokull, has melted since 1890, while the nearby land was simultaneously rising about 25 millimetres (0.98 inch) a year. This is one example of changes brought by melting ice caps.
We would like to point out one comment that we liked on Reuters “It is ironic that the very jet aircraft which are significant contributors to ozone layer breakdown are grounded by volcanic ash perhaps instigated by the melting of glaciers.” (via Reuters)
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interesting theory
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