Tuesday 29th March, E0.05 from 1.00-2.00 pm.
Lunch, and an opportunity to chat with the speaker, will be in room E402, John Dalton East Building from 12:30. All are invited!
Dr Anthony Newton, University of Edinburgh
Eyjafjallajökull: Lessons from the Past
The relatively modest eruption of Eyjafjallajökull last year resulted in travel chaos for 10.5 million passengers and cost the airline industry some £1.7 billion. This was the first eruption of Eyjafjallajökull for 190 years and its awakening renewed expectations that its neighbouring volcano, Katla, might well also erupt in the near future. Katla erupts on average twice a century, whilst Eyjafjallajökull has only erupted four times in the past 1500 years. Katla last erupted in 1918 and it is expected that its next eruption will be much larger than Eyjafjallajökull’s. The hazards from such an eruption could include jökulhlaups up to 100 times larger than those seen in 2010 and substantial tephra production. Geomorphological and tephrochronological studies suggest that eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull have coincided with eruptions from Katla. As well as providing valuable information about past eruptions, fluctuations of glacial limits can also be identified. Tephrochronology is an invaluable tool for volcanological, geomorphological and glacial studies in Iceland.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment