Fagradalsfjall Watch
March 20, 2021 10:37 AM Subscribe
Live video of Fagradalsfjall, Iceland's newest volcano. High quality Livestream of the (currently) adorable volcano erupting about 5 miles away from the famous Blue Lagoon hot springs. At the moment, one can see people wandering around at the edge of the lava flow, as well as numerous helicopters buzzing about.
If you open it fullscreen, at the moment, you can actually see dots moving around on the hill down and to the right from the main caldera - that's a group of people, scattered about. Circled in image here.
posted by kokogiak at 10:59 AM on March 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
posted by kokogiak at 10:59 AM on March 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
Perhaps volcanoes aren't such a big deal to the Icelandic people but I don't know that I would be brave enough to get as close as I'm seeing some of these people. Pretty awesome!
posted by ashbury at 11:04 AM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by ashbury at 11:04 AM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
More than 40,000 earthquakes have occurred on the peninsula in the past four weeks, a huge jump from the 1,000-3,000 earthquakes registered each year since 2014.
posted by clavdivs at 11:07 AM on March 20, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by clavdivs at 11:07 AM on March 20, 2021 [5 favorites]
This is extremely super cool.
posted by General Malaise at 11:08 AM on March 20, 2021
posted by General Malaise at 11:08 AM on March 20, 2021
this is really cool!! but yeah, I would not get so close. yikes!
posted by supermedusa at 11:10 AM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by supermedusa at 11:10 AM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
This is so amazing, and also I'm nervous by how close people are to it, though one of the linked articles says that the nearby roads are closed and people have been asked to stay away, so I'm going to assume those are all professionals who know how to be safe.
posted by mixedmetaphors at 11:23 AM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by mixedmetaphors at 11:23 AM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
The people on the right of the image (see Emily Lethbridge’s tweet) are engaged in emergency archeology, trying to rescue remains from a possible pre-Christian burial site. The archaeologist, Oddgeir Isaksen, had been forbidden to scope out the site before the eruption, but was rushed there by helicopter as soon as it started.
posted by Kattullus at 11:29 AM on March 20, 2021 [37 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 11:29 AM on March 20, 2021 [37 favorites]
I swear I saw an Instagram post or tweet from Bjork which was more or less "We love volcanoes! Yay!" but I cannot find it today, to my disappointment.
posted by jokeefe at 12:04 PM on March 20, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by jokeefe at 12:04 PM on March 20, 2021 [2 favorites]
I swear I saw an Instagram post or tweet from Bjork which was more or less "We love volcanoes! Yay!"
Here you go.
posted by mykescipark at 12:32 PM on March 20, 2021 [12 favorites]
Here you go.
posted by mykescipark at 12:32 PM on March 20, 2021 [12 favorites]
FYI my gender is magma dyke.
posted by seanmpuckett at 12:51 PM on March 20, 2021 [18 favorites]
posted by seanmpuckett at 12:51 PM on March 20, 2021 [18 favorites]
One of my friends who is into RPGs says that the existence of magma dykes implies there are other paraelementals such as ooze dykes, ice dykes, and smoke dykes.
posted by seanmpuckett at 1:06 PM on March 20, 2021 [11 favorites]
posted by seanmpuckett at 1:06 PM on March 20, 2021 [11 favorites]
Here you go.
That was some seriously björky stuff.
Here is a time-lapse of the volcano, a bit like watching molten glass pour out.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 1:17 PM on March 20, 2021 [15 favorites]
That was some seriously björky stuff.
Here is a time-lapse of the volcano, a bit like watching molten glass pour out.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 1:17 PM on March 20, 2021 [15 favorites]
I know very little about volcanoes. How do they predict how large eruptions will be? Once it starts, is the rate of eruption continually decreasing, so you know it won't get worse? I assume this, because those archeologists seem close enough that if suddenly there was a much larger explosion they would not get away in time.
posted by unid41 at 1:26 PM on March 20, 2021
posted by unid41 at 1:26 PM on March 20, 2021
I know very little about volcanoes. How do they predict how large eruptions will be?
They analyze a whole lot of different metrics and conditions, and it's probably somewhat easier to find predictions of short term volcano activity than it is to accurately predict the weather short term.
Data they look at include earthquakes and seismograph data - being able to analyze and detect what's happening underground in location and depth through triangulation and quake waveform types.
They analyze ground deformation, swelling and subsidence with lidar and surveying stations as well as space based radar or lidar.
They also analyze the gasses coming out of volcano vents both in the air as well as what's saturated in the magma itself. You can analyze a lot of information about what kind of magma or volcanic activity is occurring based just on the gases and elemental compounds inherent in a vent or flow.
Most importantly is knowing what kind of volcano it is and the geologic history. Not all volcanoes have a history of, say, building up extreme pressure and exploding like Mount Saint Helens and releasing ash or pyroclastic flows. Some volcanoes are just slow dribbles of magma.
Iceland has both types - perhaps all known types - of volcanoes and has a long and known history of slower magma vents and releases that are fairly predictable.
This is why even with a very large eruption like Mount Saint Helens the loss of life was relatively low and was more or less limited to people who refused to evacuate or scientists and journalists putting themselves in harm's way in the line of duty.
Even back then the geologists knew it was going to blow because of the seismic activity, gas analysis and ground swelling, not to mention the growing cindercone plugging the caldera, as well as the kind of "shield" volcano that it is and how they behave in eruptions due to the magma strucutures being deeper and larger from being massive subduction plate volcanoes compared to an active magma vent closer to the surface as found in some places like Iceland and Hawaii.
That being said Mount Saint Helens could have been much worse if it had a larger population nearby like Rainier does.
If Rainier blows and releases pyroclastic flows and lahars, there is geological evidence that those lahars and flows can reach as far as the city of Tacoma and parts of Seattle, and there's a lot more built up areas in those valleys that Mount Saint Helens didn't have when it blew in the early 80s.
You would need to evacuate millions of people to prevent this, and with the Cascade shield volcanoes they can be very unpredictable in actual results. It's not really the volcano erupting itself that's the main danger but the ice, snow and glaciers suddenly melting and having major portions of the mountain sluff off and start moving.
This happened during Mount Saint Helens in really big way but it was farther away from dense populations.
posted by loquacious at 1:59 PM on March 20, 2021 [19 favorites]
They analyze a whole lot of different metrics and conditions, and it's probably somewhat easier to find predictions of short term volcano activity than it is to accurately predict the weather short term.
Data they look at include earthquakes and seismograph data - being able to analyze and detect what's happening underground in location and depth through triangulation and quake waveform types.
They analyze ground deformation, swelling and subsidence with lidar and surveying stations as well as space based radar or lidar.
They also analyze the gasses coming out of volcano vents both in the air as well as what's saturated in the magma itself. You can analyze a lot of information about what kind of magma or volcanic activity is occurring based just on the gases and elemental compounds inherent in a vent or flow.
Most importantly is knowing what kind of volcano it is and the geologic history. Not all volcanoes have a history of, say, building up extreme pressure and exploding like Mount Saint Helens and releasing ash or pyroclastic flows. Some volcanoes are just slow dribbles of magma.
Iceland has both types - perhaps all known types - of volcanoes and has a long and known history of slower magma vents and releases that are fairly predictable.
This is why even with a very large eruption like Mount Saint Helens the loss of life was relatively low and was more or less limited to people who refused to evacuate or scientists and journalists putting themselves in harm's way in the line of duty.
Even back then the geologists knew it was going to blow because of the seismic activity, gas analysis and ground swelling, not to mention the growing cindercone plugging the caldera, as well as the kind of "shield" volcano that it is and how they behave in eruptions due to the magma strucutures being deeper and larger from being massive subduction plate volcanoes compared to an active magma vent closer to the surface as found in some places like Iceland and Hawaii.
That being said Mount Saint Helens could have been much worse if it had a larger population nearby like Rainier does.
If Rainier blows and releases pyroclastic flows and lahars, there is geological evidence that those lahars and flows can reach as far as the city of Tacoma and parts of Seattle, and there's a lot more built up areas in those valleys that Mount Saint Helens didn't have when it blew in the early 80s.
You would need to evacuate millions of people to prevent this, and with the Cascade shield volcanoes they can be very unpredictable in actual results. It's not really the volcano erupting itself that's the main danger but the ice, snow and glaciers suddenly melting and having major portions of the mountain sluff off and start moving.
This happened during Mount Saint Helens in really big way but it was farther away from dense populations.
posted by loquacious at 1:59 PM on March 20, 2021 [19 favorites]
This is so amazing, and also I'm nervous by how close people are to it, though one of the linked articles says that the nearby roads are closed and people have been asked to stay away, so I'm going to assume those are all professionals who know how to be safe.
I definitely saw someone walking their dog (I’m assuming. Could be any smaller than adult human whitish blob) earlier.
It’s now night. Very dramatic!
posted by rodlymight at 2:49 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
I definitely saw someone walking their dog (I’m assuming. Could be any smaller than adult human whitish blob) earlier.
It’s now night. Very dramatic!
posted by rodlymight at 2:49 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
If Rainier blows and releases pyroclastic flows and lahars
The town of Orting, WA might be the winner for "worst" in this category. The town and its schools are built on top of lahars upon lahars, between the Carbon and Puyallup rivers, near their convergence. The plan is to load elementary kids on buses, and high school kids to drive other students and get out of town. The escape routes are two bridges. At least they are modern, so they might survive if any earthquake accompanies any surprise lahars.
Also, they knew about this at least 25 years ago when the evacuation plans were written up. Several more subdivisions have gone up in the area that would be the most "trapped", so to speak. Just pure genius.
posted by Mister Fabulous at 2:57 PM on March 20, 2021 [6 favorites]
The town of Orting, WA might be the winner for "worst" in this category. The town and its schools are built on top of lahars upon lahars, between the Carbon and Puyallup rivers, near their convergence. The plan is to load elementary kids on buses, and high school kids to drive other students and get out of town. The escape routes are two bridges. At least they are modern, so they might survive if any earthquake accompanies any surprise lahars.
Also, they knew about this at least 25 years ago when the evacuation plans were written up. Several more subdivisions have gone up in the area that would be the most "trapped", so to speak. Just pure genius.
posted by Mister Fabulous at 2:57 PM on March 20, 2021 [6 favorites]
The people on the right of the image (see Emily Lethbridge’s tweet) are engaged in emergency archeology,
Yikes! The only emergency archaeology I'm familiar with is in the City of London, where museum teams excavate before some massive office development. The worst they have to worry about there is impatient contractors.
posted by Fuchsoid at 3:02 PM on March 20, 2021 [4 favorites]
Yikes! The only emergency archaeology I'm familiar with is in the City of London, where museum teams excavate before some massive office development. The worst they have to worry about there is impatient contractors.
posted by Fuchsoid at 3:02 PM on March 20, 2021 [4 favorites]
This is so amazing, and also I'm nervous by how close people are to it, though one of the linked articles says that the nearby roads are closed and people have been asked to stay away, so I'm going to assume those are all professionals who know how to be safe.
I have been led to believe that the eagles are standing by.
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 3:02 PM on March 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
emergency archeology
Hopefully they had time to recover the tablets prophesizing the volcano that would rise from this ancient tomb and initiate the world's annihilation.
posted by paper chromatographologist at 3:04 PM on March 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
Hopefully they had time to recover the tablets prophesizing the volcano that would rise from this ancient tomb and initiate the world's annihilation.
posted by paper chromatographologist at 3:04 PM on March 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
Hopefully they had time to recover the tablets prophesizing the volcano that would rise from this ancient tomb and initiate the world's annihilation.
Could you not? I've got floods going on here at the moment and while the coffee supply will likely last until the water goes down, my machete and other cannibal apocalypse survival gear is stuck on the other side of the bridge right now.
posted by ninazer0 at 3:09 PM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
Could you not? I've got floods going on here at the moment and while the coffee supply will likely last until the water goes down, my machete and other cannibal apocalypse survival gear is stuck on the other side of the bridge right now.
posted by ninazer0 at 3:09 PM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
This is being referred to in Iceland as a “tourist eruption”, which means it would be ideal to sacrifice unsuspecting foreigners in to appease the land gods go on quick tours to see an eruption. In fact, given its proximity to the main international airport in Iceland, travelers could pop out of the airport and take a look in about the same amount of time it takes to wait in line for a cup of coffee.
But since there’s very little international travel, the closest people outside Iceland can get is to watch on the webcam, but that’s only part of the experience. So it’s an internet eruption.
Since webcams don’t broadcast in smellovision, you might be wondering what the lava smells like. According to journalist Ingunn Lára Kristjánsdóttir (video in Icelandic), the lava smells like burnt bacon.
Again, an internet eruption.
posted by Kattullus at 3:14 PM on March 20, 2021 [23 favorites]
But since there’s very little international travel, the closest people outside Iceland can get is to watch on the webcam, but that’s only part of the experience. So it’s an internet eruption.
Since webcams don’t broadcast in smellovision, you might be wondering what the lava smells like. According to journalist Ingunn Lára Kristjánsdóttir (video in Icelandic), the lava smells like burnt bacon.
Again, an internet eruption.
posted by Kattullus at 3:14 PM on March 20, 2021 [23 favorites]
Since webcams don’t broadcast in smellovision, you might be wondering what the lava smells like.
A geologist based in Iceland says that it smells like liquid hot magma.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 3:29 PM on March 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
A geologist based in Iceland says that it smells like liquid hot magma.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 3:29 PM on March 20, 2021 [7 favorites]
the lava smells like burnt bacon
Yet another way Iceland is superior to those of us here in NW America...ours smell like smoked butt crack, more often than not.
posted by maxwelton at 3:29 PM on March 20, 2021 [2 favorites]
Yet another way Iceland is superior to those of us here in NW America...ours smell like smoked butt crack, more often than not.
posted by maxwelton at 3:29 PM on March 20, 2021 [2 favorites]
This is being referred to in Iceland as a “tourist eruption”,
So, Iceland's geology can't be bothered to seriously erupt. I feel you Iceland, after the last 18 months, it's hard to build up much enthusiasm for anything.
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:31 PM on March 20, 2021 [5 favorites]
So, Iceland's geology can't be bothered to seriously erupt. I feel you Iceland, after the last 18 months, it's hard to build up much enthusiasm for anything.
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:31 PM on March 20, 2021 [5 favorites]
my machete
Wait, you have a machete? Ironically I ran out of knives a while ago and have only spoons left.
Which, yes, they do in fact hurt more but the work is messy, laborious and unpleasant.
posted by loquacious at 3:40 PM on March 20, 2021 [2 favorites]
Wait, you have a machete? Ironically I ran out of knives a while ago and have only spoons left.
Which, yes, they do in fact hurt more but the work is messy, laborious and unpleasant.
posted by loquacious at 3:40 PM on March 20, 2021 [2 favorites]
Hliðarmenn is the YouTube channel of a man who expresses, with a lot of expertise and a charming Icelandic accent, his concerns about seismic activity in Iceland. He has been posting a lot lately about the area around Fagradalsfjall.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 4:17 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 4:17 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
This is extremely super cool.
That's really not how volcanoes work.
posted by flabdablet at 4:20 PM on March 20, 2021 [6 favorites]
That's really not how volcanoes work.
posted by flabdablet at 4:20 PM on March 20, 2021 [6 favorites]
Yet another way Iceland is superior to those of us here in NW America...ours smell like smoked butt crack, more often than not.
They pay for the bacon-flavoured magma with their hot water all smelling of sulphur. (There are no boilers in Iceland, and all hot water comes from geothermal wells.)
posted by acb at 4:24 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
They pay for the bacon-flavoured magma with their hot water all smelling of sulphur. (There are no boilers in Iceland, and all hot water comes from geothermal wells.)
posted by acb at 4:24 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
Wait, you have a machete? Ironically I ran out of knives a while ago and have only spoons left.
posted by loquacious
You're lucky. Some of us run out of spoons and have to pick our battles carefully...
Can anyone tell me what Fadradalsfjall means?
posted by Jane the Brown at 4:34 PM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by loquacious
You're lucky. Some of us run out of spoons and have to pick our battles carefully...
Can anyone tell me what Fadradalsfjall means?
posted by Jane the Brown at 4:34 PM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
Can anyone tell me what Fadradalsfjall means?
I only know some Norwegian, so was wondering about this myself. Dal is valley and fjell is mountain, so Fagra Valley Mountain?
I saw someone say Fagradal means beautiful valley. Fagra isn't that far from the Norwegian vakker so this seems plausible?
I'm totally guessing though.
posted by knapah at 4:57 PM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
I only know some Norwegian, so was wondering about this myself. Dal is valley and fjell is mountain, so Fagra Valley Mountain?
I saw someone say Fagradal means beautiful valley. Fagra isn't that far from the Norwegian vakker so this seems plausible?
I'm totally guessing though.
posted by knapah at 4:57 PM on March 20, 2021 [3 favorites]
Can anyone tell me what Fadradalsfjall means?
I speak Swedish, not Icelandic, but knapah has it. It's FagraDalsFjall, a compound of Fagra (beautiful) Dal (valley) and Fjall (mountain). I believe there are two other mountains in Iceland with the same name.
Thanks for the link to the emergency archaeology explanation. That is super neat, glad they got some time to work before it was swallowed!
posted by gemmy at 6:00 PM on March 20, 2021 [4 favorites]
I speak Swedish, not Icelandic, but knapah has it. It's FagraDalsFjall, a compound of Fagra (beautiful) Dal (valley) and Fjall (mountain). I believe there are two other mountains in Iceland with the same name.
Thanks for the link to the emergency archaeology explanation. That is super neat, glad they got some time to work before it was swallowed!
posted by gemmy at 6:00 PM on March 20, 2021 [4 favorites]
Interestingly UK English in the North has equivalents - "dale" is valley, and "fell" is a hill/mountain, especially one near/by a dale. "Fagra" I didn't think had an equivalent, but on googling it "fair" shares the same root word as old Norse "fagr".
So, Fairdale Fell, if it was in the Yorkshire Dales!
posted by Jon Mitchell at 6:28 PM on March 20, 2021 [26 favorites]
So, Fairdale Fell, if it was in the Yorkshire Dales!
posted by Jon Mitchell at 6:28 PM on March 20, 2021 [26 favorites]
“Volcano Watch! The mood is tense; I have been on some serious, serious reports but nothing quite like this. I, uh... Fagrad...alls...fall is inside right now. I tried to get an interview with it, but they said no, you can't do that it’s a live volcano, it will literally burn your face off.
“Hey, you're making me look stupid. Get out here, Lava Jerk!”
posted by Huffy Puffy at 6:38 PM on March 20, 2021
“Hey, you're making me look stupid. Get out here, Lava Jerk!”
posted by Huffy Puffy at 6:38 PM on March 20, 2021
Here is a time-lapse of the volcano, a bit like watching molten glass pour out.
It's really weird how that volcano has a little red bird and lots of small black bugs flying around near----ohhhhh, wow.
I'm watching the live feed now focused on the volcano in the dark. The glow of the lava in the night is incredible.
posted by medusa at 7:44 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
It's really weird how that volcano has a little red bird and lots of small black bugs flying around near----ohhhhh, wow.
I'm watching the live feed now focused on the volcano in the dark. The glow of the lava in the night is incredible.
posted by medusa at 7:44 PM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]
emergency archeology
They were buried there, and we did not want to disrespect them, leave them alone.
"But they will be under a mountain forever with no chance in future to look."
"OK, but make it quick!"
posted by Meatbomb at 8:39 PM on March 20, 2021 [4 favorites]
They were buried there, and we did not want to disrespect them, leave them alone.
"But they will be under a mountain forever with no chance in future to look."
"OK, but make it quick!"
posted by Meatbomb at 8:39 PM on March 20, 2021 [4 favorites]
The feed from the webcam has cut out for unknown reasons. RÚV are sending people to check what the matter is.
Just in case “archeologists disturb a pagan burial mound while a volcano erupts” wasn’t enough like the beginning of a horror movie.
posted by Kattullus at 11:51 PM on March 20, 2021 [21 favorites]
Just in case “archeologists disturb a pagan burial mound while a volcano erupts” wasn’t enough like the beginning of a horror movie.
posted by Kattullus at 11:51 PM on March 20, 2021 [21 favorites]
Interestingly UK English in the North has equivalents - "dale" is valley, and "fell" is a hill/mountain, especially one near/by a dale. "Fagra" I didn't think had an equivalent, but on googling it "fair" shares the same root word as old Norse "fagr".
So, Fairdale Fell, if it was in the Yorkshire Dales!
There are so many other Viking era leftovers in the language up there, count the Kirks and Becks for a start! And any placename ending in -by (town) or -wick ('vik' - bay).
I love the translation to Fairdale Fell, brilliant.
posted by knapah at 2:32 AM on March 21, 2021 [7 favorites]
So, Fairdale Fell, if it was in the Yorkshire Dales!
There are so many other Viking era leftovers in the language up there, count the Kirks and Becks for a start! And any placename ending in -by (town) or -wick ('vik' - bay).
I love the translation to Fairdale Fell, brilliant.
posted by knapah at 2:32 AM on March 21, 2021 [7 favorites]
RÚV just published a photo of the valley, taken in 2011 by geologist Arnþór Óli Árnason from the same spot as the webcam is located. It makes for an interesting comparison to right no.
Also, since I’m posting pictures from RÚV, their reporter Kristín Sigurðardóttir took this incredible photo, showing clearly how many people have made their way to the volcano to see it.
posted by Kattullus at 8:20 AM on March 21, 2021 [8 favorites]
Also, since I’m posting pictures from RÚV, their reporter Kristín Sigurðardóttir took this incredible photo, showing clearly how many people have made their way to the volcano to see it.
posted by Kattullus at 8:20 AM on March 21, 2021 [8 favorites]
"Can anyone tell me what Fadradalsfjall means?"
This pronunciation guide from the Reykjavik Grapevine (an English language weekly) defines Fadradalsfjall as "beautiful valley mountain." Video dates from March 5. At the time, I think the eruption was expected to happen near Þráinsskjaldarhraun?
posted by baseballpajamas at 8:46 AM on March 21, 2021
This pronunciation guide from the Reykjavik Grapevine (an English language weekly) defines Fadradalsfjall as "beautiful valley mountain." Video dates from March 5. At the time, I think the eruption was expected to happen near Þráinsskjaldarhraun?
posted by baseballpajamas at 8:46 AM on March 21, 2021
So, Fairdale Fell, if it was in the Yorkshire Dales!
Until now I hadn't made connection that the Swedish word vacker (beautiful) is a cognate of “fair”. Thanks!
posted by acb at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2021 [2 favorites]
Until now I hadn't made connection that the Swedish word vacker (beautiful) is a cognate of “fair”. Thanks!
posted by acb at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2021 [2 favorites]
I'm really appreciating all the linguistic input here, mefites!
posted by supermedusa at 9:58 AM on March 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by supermedusa at 9:58 AM on March 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
Here’s a video from the webcam of when part of the rim of the crater collapsed.
posted by Kattullus at 10:36 AM on March 21, 2021 [9 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 10:36 AM on March 21, 2021 [9 favorites]
ein_nope.gif
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 10:44 AM on March 21, 2021
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 10:44 AM on March 21, 2021
This webcam tickles in me the thing I was desperately hoping Mt. St. Helens would be, as a 13-year-old kid in Olympia in 1980. (Which is not to take away the differently-astonishing thing St. Helens was.)
posted by maxwelton at 11:38 AM on March 21, 2021
posted by maxwelton at 11:38 AM on March 21, 2021
hadn't made connection that the Swedish word vacker (beautiful) is a cognate of “fair”.
Until digging as a result of this thread I didn't know that a "dale" was a valley! Despite being brought up in Calderdale, also known as Calder...er, Valley. D'oh!
posted by Jon Mitchell at 11:48 AM on March 21, 2021 [3 favorites]
Until digging as a result of this thread I didn't know that a "dale" was a valley! Despite being brought up in Calderdale, also known as Calder...er, Valley. D'oh!
posted by Jon Mitchell at 11:48 AM on March 21, 2021 [3 favorites]
RÚV just published a photo of the valley, taken in 2011 by geologist Arnþór Óli Árnason from the same spot as the webcam is located. It makes for an interesting comparison to right no.
Very weird how both the before and after photos look like screenshots from Morrowind.
posted by BungaDunga at 1:03 PM on March 21, 2021 [2 favorites]
Very weird how both the before and after photos look like screenshots from Morrowind.
posted by BungaDunga at 1:03 PM on March 21, 2021 [2 favorites]
Video from up close , yesterday.
There's some beautiful footage around the 7-8 minute mark.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 2:46 PM on March 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
There's some beautiful footage around the 7-8 minute mark.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 2:46 PM on March 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
Fell and dale...
I just finished The Fellowship of the Ring. Tolkien made much use of those old words!
posted by Fukiyama at 5:37 PM on March 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
I just finished The Fellowship of the Ring. Tolkien made much use of those old words!
posted by Fukiyama at 5:37 PM on March 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
Who was Isólfur frá Ísólfsstöðum and did he have an Uthbert.
posted by clavdivs at 6:31 PM on March 21, 2021
posted by clavdivs at 6:31 PM on March 21, 2021
The situation got out of hand during the night. The weather turned for the worse, and a warning was issued not to trek up to the volcano, but people kept arriving.
Search and rescue teams did their best to turn people away, but some arrived by other routes and had be helped down because they didn’t have the proper clothing for the weather.
As of now almost everyone seems to accounted for, except people who arrived in a car with German license plates. The hope is that they got a ride with someone else.
This is worrisome because in 2010 two people died because they got lost trying to find a volcano, and succumbed to the elements when the weather got bad.
posted by Kattullus at 1:49 AM on March 22, 2021 [5 favorites]
Search and rescue teams did their best to turn people away, but some arrived by other routes and had be helped down because they didn’t have the proper clothing for the weather.
As of now almost everyone seems to accounted for, except people who arrived in a car with German license plates. The hope is that they got a ride with someone else.
This is worrisome because in 2010 two people died because they got lost trying to find a volcano, and succumbed to the elements when the weather got bad.
posted by Kattullus at 1:49 AM on March 22, 2021 [5 favorites]
Update: The German traveler has been found. He had gone too far from his car to return, walked to a nearby village, and slept the night there. When he looked for news about the volcano the next morning, he saw a picture of his car, found out he’d been searched for, and called the police to let them know he was safe.
posted by Kattullus at 3:54 AM on March 22, 2021 [8 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 3:54 AM on March 22, 2021 [8 favorites]
I'm guessing the remains of his car have become a monument to the majesty of nature
posted by acb at 7:48 AM on March 22, 2021
posted by acb at 7:48 AM on March 22, 2021
clavdivs: Who was Isólfur frá Ísólfsstöðum
He was the first person to settle the area, back when Iceland was first populated. The area that was being disturbed by emergency archeologists was a landscape feature that had been traditionally identified as his burial place.
The name of that valley that’s slowly filling with lava is Geldingadalir, or Wetherdales, if we want to keep the Yorkshire translation system in place. In an old tale it’s recorded that Ísólfur, when he realized he was dying, asked to be buried in the valley where his wethers loved to frolic.
And so the archeologists went looking for his remains, but found no evidence of a burial place. So if he was buried somewhere in that valley, he’s going to be a lot less disturbable now.
posted by Kattullus at 1:41 PM on March 22, 2021 [8 favorites]
He was the first person to settle the area, back when Iceland was first populated. The area that was being disturbed by emergency archeologists was a landscape feature that had been traditionally identified as his burial place.
The name of that valley that’s slowly filling with lava is Geldingadalir, or Wetherdales, if we want to keep the Yorkshire translation system in place. In an old tale it’s recorded that Ísólfur, when he realized he was dying, asked to be buried in the valley where his wethers loved to frolic.
And so the archeologists went looking for his remains, but found no evidence of a burial place. So if he was buried somewhere in that valley, he’s going to be a lot less disturbable now.
posted by Kattullus at 1:41 PM on March 22, 2021 [8 favorites]
Great drone footage: The light in the night – Into the crater.
posted by rory at 3:02 PM on March 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by rory at 3:02 PM on March 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
I've been checking the volcano live stream every so often since this began. I can't believe how many people are there right now. It's like tourists at Niagara Falls! Well, maybe not quite that much, but still. And in a snow-storm too!
posted by fimbulvetr at 12:28 PM on March 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by fimbulvetr at 12:28 PM on March 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
The news report linked here the other day talked about how challenging the multi-km hike in was, too. It's only an hour or so until dark and there are lots of folks there, in the snow. Walking out in those conditions in the dark doesn't sound like a cake walk.
I wonder if some sort of easier/closer access has been opened, or some sort of vehicle-based lift is now available?
posted by maxwelton at 12:59 PM on March 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
I wonder if some sort of easier/closer access has been opened, or some sort of vehicle-based lift is now available?
posted by maxwelton at 12:59 PM on March 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
Yeah, I was kinda wondering the same thing. Or if someone is running off-road busses out to the volcano.
posted by fimbulvetr at 1:19 PM on March 24, 2021
posted by fimbulvetr at 1:19 PM on March 24, 2021
And there are still lots of people out there in the dark. Must be amazing to see the lava glowing like that in person.
posted by fimbulvetr at 1:44 PM on March 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by fimbulvetr at 1:44 PM on March 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
The contrast of the rivers of glowing red lava to the left and the constellations of people with their glowing blue phones to the right is striking.
posted by tavella at 3:07 PM on March 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by tavella at 3:07 PM on March 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
From the volcano bus promo page:
Personally I feel very, very glad to reside an adequate distance from the edge of a large tectonic plate. Snakes and spiders and crocodiles and sharks and drop bears and floods and droughts and bushfires and Scott Morrison I can just about deal with; sudden involuntary melding with the substance of the planet, not so much.
posted by flabdablet at 8:36 PM on March 24, 2021
Don´t miss out on this once in a lifetime experience and witness the raw power of the lava pouring out of the surface of the earth.Don't miss out on this pointless and wholly avoidable opportunity to display your own manifest failure to respect - or even grasp, really - the relative flimsiness of what you've hitherto thought of as "solid ground".
Personally I feel very, very glad to reside an adequate distance from the edge of a large tectonic plate. Snakes and spiders and crocodiles and sharks and drop bears and floods and droughts and bushfires and Scott Morrison I can just about deal with; sudden involuntary melding with the substance of the planet, not so much.
posted by flabdablet at 8:36 PM on March 24, 2021
Honestly, if I had money and covid travel restrictions were not a thing, I would love to travel to Iceland to see this (and the rest of it, of course, or as much as I could in a few weeks).
posted by maxwelton at 11:10 PM on March 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by maxwelton at 11:10 PM on March 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
As I'm sure you've noticed, the valley has been filling up. At the current rate of flow, the lava will fill the whole thing in about two weeks (though the flow has been variable, so it might be one week, or it might be more than two weeks). Thankfully, it shouldn't flow towards inhabited areas, but into another valley to the east, called Meradalir (Fillydales, according to the Yorkshire naming scheme).
It seems like the lava is coming straight from the mantle, so from below the earth's crust. That might mean that this will last for many years, eventually forming a shield volcano, but it might just as well peter out.
There has been a lot of gas build-up in the area, so people have been turned away, and kept from going too near to the fresh lava (this video shows why that's clearly a bad idea). Mostly, the focus is on keeping things safe and under control, not forbidding people from going near the volcano, but making sure that they take every precaution and go along safe paths. Also, from what I can tell, there are fewer people now than there were in the first couple of days. The "carnival atmosphere" of those days can be seen in this video, which includes a saucepan full of bacon being eaten by the lava.
posted by Kattullus at 3:54 AM on March 25, 2021 [7 favorites]
It seems like the lava is coming straight from the mantle, so from below the earth's crust. That might mean that this will last for many years, eventually forming a shield volcano, but it might just as well peter out.
There has been a lot of gas build-up in the area, so people have been turned away, and kept from going too near to the fresh lava (this video shows why that's clearly a bad idea). Mostly, the focus is on keeping things safe and under control, not forbidding people from going near the volcano, but making sure that they take every precaution and go along safe paths. Also, from what I can tell, there are fewer people now than there were in the first couple of days. The "carnival atmosphere" of those days can be seen in this video, which includes a saucepan full of bacon being eaten by the lava.
posted by Kattullus at 3:54 AM on March 25, 2021 [7 favorites]
Just to be clear, it's not people by the lava eating the bacon, it's the lava itself eating it along with the eggs cooking in the same pan and the pan itself.
What a criminal waste of perfectly good bacon and eggs.
posted by flabdablet at 4:15 AM on March 25, 2021 [3 favorites]
What a criminal waste of perfectly good bacon and eggs.
posted by flabdablet at 4:15 AM on March 25, 2021 [3 favorites]
It faces southeast. Incidentally, RÚV has done a “the eruption in one minute” video.
posted by Kattullus at 9:59 AM on March 25, 2021 [7 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 9:59 AM on March 25, 2021 [7 favorites]
What a criminal waste of perfectly good bacon and eggs.
The old gods must have their sacrifice.
posted by acb at 4:31 PM on March 25, 2021 [3 favorites]
The old gods must have their sacrifice.
posted by acb at 4:31 PM on March 25, 2021 [3 favorites]
Any self-respecting old god would expect to be offered at least a whole Viking, complete with horned helmet, a full suit of bogus Hollywood plate armour and a horse for good measure. Trying to lowball them with two strips of bacon in a pan is just insulting.
There will be at least one gormless tourist properly vaporized before this thing settles down again.
posted by flabdablet at 12:20 AM on March 26, 2021 [1 favorite]
There will be at least one gormless tourist properly vaporized before this thing settles down again.
posted by flabdablet at 12:20 AM on March 26, 2021 [1 favorite]
In a sign-of-the-times development, there’s been a case of Covid infection that’s been traced to contact between two people who were staring at the volcano.
posted by Kattullus at 6:20 AM on March 26, 2021 [7 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 6:20 AM on March 26, 2021 [7 favorites]
I'm nervous by how close people are to it, though one of the linked articles says that the nearby roads are closed and people have been asked to stay away, so I'm going to assume those are all professionals who know how to be safe.
I mean, even if everyone there were professionals, everyone I know in geology thinks that vulcanologists are complete nutters. It's a field full of self-selected people who decided that standing closer to active volcanoes would be the right career move for them.
posted by automatronic at 6:42 AM on March 28, 2021 [8 favorites]
I mean, even if everyone there were professionals, everyone I know in geology thinks that vulcanologists are complete nutters. It's a field full of self-selected people who decided that standing closer to active volcanoes would be the right career move for them.
posted by automatronic at 6:42 AM on March 28, 2021 [8 favorites]
If you haven’t checked out the webcam for a while, the north face of the volcano has collapsed, so it’s particularly spectacular right now.
posted by Kattullus at 12:46 PM on March 29, 2021
posted by Kattullus at 12:46 PM on March 29, 2021
I see the constellation of phones is now stretched out on the ridge behind the volcano, now that the lava has eaten the previous viewing area.
posted by tavella at 3:38 PM on March 29, 2021
posted by tavella at 3:38 PM on March 29, 2021
Kattullus: If you haven’t checked out the webcam for a while, the north face of the volcano has collapsed, so it’s particularly spectacular right now.
I have the live stream full-screen on my second monitor. I happened to be looking at it today when a big chunk of the South wall broke off and fell into the magma pool on the left, partially blocking the cone and causing the magma to spew out violently. It didn't take long for the side of the cone to be ripped open as you see it now. I hope the RUV people saved the video and publish it to their site. It was truly spectacular.
posted by Surely This at 5:44 PM on March 29, 2021
I have the live stream full-screen on my second monitor. I happened to be looking at it today when a big chunk of the South wall broke off and fell into the magma pool on the left, partially blocking the cone and causing the magma to spew out violently. It didn't take long for the side of the cone to be ripped open as you see it now. I hope the RUV people saved the video and publish it to their site. It was truly spectacular.
posted by Surely This at 5:44 PM on March 29, 2021
automatronic:
I'm a bit miffed at being referred to as a "complete nutter" - but in fairness I have no reasonable rebuttal.
posted by speug at 7:27 PM on March 29, 2021 [9 favorites]
I'm a bit miffed at being referred to as a "complete nutter" - but in fairness I have no reasonable rebuttal.
posted by speug at 7:27 PM on March 29, 2021 [9 favorites]
bz: > I get no sense of scale from that view. It looks as though it could be either miles across or just a few feet across.
When you look at each visible dot that's being tossed out, think about the hangtime of a football/soccer ball that's been kicked about 100m—it's about 5 or 6 seconds at a 45-ish degree angle. So (this is me doing fuzzy math) I'd say the blobs that come out of the calderas are traveling about 60-100 meters, and each of those little blobs would the size of a person or a refrigerator or a smart car, give or take depending on the size of the dot of lava. The big pools look about 60m across themselves.
Makes for one deadly football stadium, what with all the toxic gasses floating around, too! That's what I feel like I am looking at: two football-stadium-sized patchs of land, viewed from a distance of about 1km.
That's my guesstimate. That was fun! I like to keep this on full-screen in the background sometimes when I am doing other stuff.
posted by not_on_display at 5:59 PM on March 30, 2021 [2 favorites]
When you look at each visible dot that's being tossed out, think about the hangtime of a football/soccer ball that's been kicked about 100m—it's about 5 or 6 seconds at a 45-ish degree angle. So (this is me doing fuzzy math) I'd say the blobs that come out of the calderas are traveling about 60-100 meters, and each of those little blobs would the size of a person or a refrigerator or a smart car, give or take depending on the size of the dot of lava. The big pools look about 60m across themselves.
Makes for one deadly football stadium, what with all the toxic gasses floating around, too! That's what I feel like I am looking at: two football-stadium-sized patchs of land, viewed from a distance of about 1km.
That's my guesstimate. That was fun! I like to keep this on full-screen in the background sometimes when I am doing other stuff.
posted by not_on_display at 5:59 PM on March 30, 2021 [2 favorites]
It looks particularly lovely right now, with the pre-dawn sky deep blue and the lava apparently resurfaced recently, so the lacework of red is very bright.
posted by tavella at 11:10 PM on March 30, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by tavella at 11:10 PM on March 30, 2021 [2 favorites]
One of the neat things about gravity is that while it is overall scale invariant, if you don't scale time with distance, it is absolutely possible to tell how large something is by how fast it starts to fall.
A rock dropped 10cm onto a table will take just over a tenth of a second to land.
A rock dropped a meter will take just less than half a second to land.
A rock dropped five meters will take just about a second to hit.
So you can judge how large something is by how far it falls from the apex of a ballistic curve in about a second -- that's five meters (about 18 feet).
Watch one of the blobs of lava as it goes up, then {click} starts to come down. In one second, it's traveled 5 meters downwards. That will give you a real sense of the size of the object and the things around it.
Right now it looks to me like the eruption on the left is throwing chunks of molten rock about 20-200cm in size to 20-40m high in the air.
Actually right now there's two people standing right in front of the live view camera smooching.
posted by seanmpuckett at 7:27 AM on March 31, 2021 [3 favorites]
A rock dropped 10cm onto a table will take just over a tenth of a second to land.
A rock dropped a meter will take just less than half a second to land.
A rock dropped five meters will take just about a second to hit.
So you can judge how large something is by how far it falls from the apex of a ballistic curve in about a second -- that's five meters (about 18 feet).
Watch one of the blobs of lava as it goes up, then {click} starts to come down. In one second, it's traveled 5 meters downwards. That will give you a real sense of the size of the object and the things around it.
Right now it looks to me like the eruption on the left is throwing chunks of molten rock about 20-200cm in size to 20-40m high in the air.
Actually right now there's two people standing right in front of the live view camera smooching.
posted by seanmpuckett at 7:27 AM on March 31, 2021 [3 favorites]
As you may have noticed, the webcam is now showing a different eruption. A 500 meters or so long fissure opened 500 meters or so away from the previous volcano, and the camera has been turned to face it. You can see when they turn it in this video.
posted by Kattullus at 6:08 AM on April 5, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 6:08 AM on April 5, 2021 [3 favorites]
There is now an additional, smaller fissure.
posted by Kattullus at 6:56 AM on April 5, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by Kattullus at 6:56 AM on April 5, 2021 [3 favorites]
Some pretty excellent drone footage shot yesterday, in quality up to 2160p/4K. [1080's good enough for me.]
posted by not_on_display at 9:44 PM on April 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by not_on_display at 9:44 PM on April 7, 2021 [4 favorites]
The new fissure looks to be about where people were standing a few days ago to watch the first one. I know that in some sense we are all standing on a thin skin of semi-stable rock above a vast sea of lava, but usually the thin skin is some miles thick. I'd be very creeped out to think I was standing only some feet above a pool of lava that could break out right where I was. I guess I was not made to live on a volcanic island.
posted by tavella at 8:17 AM on April 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by tavella at 8:17 AM on April 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
standing only some feet above a pool of lava that could break out right where I was
We all live on stone ice floes floating on liquid hell.
Even without infernal killer whales to make the magma wash over the top, deliberately choosing to hang about on the crumbly edges has never struck me as sound.
posted by flabdablet at 9:58 AM on April 8, 2021 [2 favorites]
We all live on stone ice floes floating on liquid hell.
Even without infernal killer whales to make the magma wash over the top, deliberately choosing to hang about on the crumbly edges has never struck me as sound.
posted by flabdablet at 9:58 AM on April 8, 2021 [2 favorites]
> deliberately choosing to hang about on the crumbly edges has never struck me as sound.
It's crumbly edges all the way down.
posted by not_on_display at 12:38 PM on April 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
It's crumbly edges all the way down.
posted by not_on_display at 12:38 PM on April 8, 2021 [3 favorites]
...drone footage...
That looks like some quality CGI from a first-person shooter game.
Pretty amazing.
posted by MtDewd at 8:35 AM on April 10, 2021 [2 favorites]
That looks like some quality CGI from a first-person shooter game.
Pretty amazing.
posted by MtDewd at 8:35 AM on April 10, 2021 [2 favorites]
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posted by bz at 10:53 AM on March 20, 2021 [1 favorite]