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| See also: | Other events in 1794 · Timeline of Icelandic history | ||||
Events in the year 1794 in Iceland .
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| See also: | Other events in 1794 · Timeline of Icelandic history | ||||
Events in the year 1794 in Iceland .
A glacier is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as crevasses and seracs, as it slowly flows and deforms under stresses induced by its weight. As it moves, it abrades rock and debris from its substrate to create landforms such as cirques, moraines, or fjords. Although a glacier may flow into a body of water, it forms only on land and is distinct from the much thinner sea ice and lake ice that form on the surface of bodies of water.
Vatnajökull is the largest and most voluminous ice cap in Iceland, and the second largest in area in Europe after the Severny Island ice cap of Novaya Zemlya. It is in the south-east of the island, covering approximately 10% of the country.
Langjökull is the second largest ice cap in Iceland, after Vatnajökull. It is situated in the west of the Icelandic interior or Highlands of Iceland and can be seen clearly from Haukadalur. It covers the higher parts of the Langjökull volcanic system.
Hofsjökull is the third largest ice cap in Iceland after Vatnajökull and Langjökull and covers the largest active central volcano in the country, which has the same name. It is situated in the west of the Highlands of Iceland and north of the mountain range Kerlingarfjöll, between the two largest glaciers of Iceland.
Eyjafjallajökull, sometimes referred to by the numeronym E15, is one of the smaller ice caps of Iceland, north of Skógar and west of Mýrdalsjökull. The ice cap covers the caldera of a volcano with a summit elevation of 1,651 metres (5,417 ft). The volcano has erupted relatively frequently since the Last Glacial Period, most recently in 2010, when, although relatively small for a volcanic eruption, it caused enormous disruption to air travel across northern and western Europe for a week.
Snæfellsjökull is a 700,000-year-old glacier-capped stratovolcano in western Iceland. It is situated on the westernmost part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula. Sometimes it may be seen from the city of Reykjavík over Faxa Bay, at a distance of 120 km (75 mi).
Skeiðará is a relatively short glacier river. It has its source on the glacier Skeiðarárjökull, one of the southern arms of the Vatnajökull in the south of Iceland.
Jökulsárlón is a large glacial lake in southern part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland. Situated at the head of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier, it developed into a lake after the glacier started receding from the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. The lake has grown since then at varying rates because of melting of the glaciers. The glacial front is now about 8 km (5.0 mi) away from the ocean's edge and the lake covers an area of about 18 km2 (6.9 sq mi). In 2009 it was reported to be the deepest lake in Iceland, at over 284 m (932 ft), as glacial retreat extended its boundaries. The size of the lake has increased fourfold since the 1970s.
In glaciology, an ice cap is a mass of ice that covers less than 50,000 km2 (19,000 sq mi) of land area. Larger ice masses covering more than 50,000 km2 (19,000 sq mi) are termed ice sheets.
Guðbrandur Þorláksson or Gudbrand Thorlakssøn was bishop of Hólar from 8 April 1571 until his death. He was the longest-serving bishop in Iceland and is known for printing the Guðbrandsbiblía, first complete Icelandic translation of the Bible.
The geology of Iceland is unique and of particular interest to geologists. Iceland lies on the divergent boundary between the Eurasian plate and the North American plate. It also lies above a hotspot, the Iceland plume. The plume is believed to have caused the formation of Iceland itself, the island first appearing over the ocean surface about 16 to 18 million years ago. The result is an island characterized by repeated volcanism and geothermal phenomena such as geysers.
Glacier morphology, or the form a glacier takes, is influenced by temperature, precipitation, topography, and other factors. The goal of glacial morphology is to gain a better understanding of glaciated landscapes and the way they are shaped. Types of glaciers can range from massive ice sheets, such as the Greenland ice sheet, to small cirque glaciers found perched on mountain tops. Glaciers can be grouped into two main categories:
Iceland has a subpolar oceanic climate near the southern coastal area and tundra inland in the highlands. The island lies in the path of the North Atlantic Current, which makes its climate more temperate than would be expected for its latitude just south of the Arctic Circle. This effect is aided by the Irminger Current, which also helps to moderate the island's temperature. The weather in Iceland is notoriously variable.
Breiðamerkurjökull is an outlet glacier of the larger glacier of Vatnajökull and a piedmont glacier in the southern part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland. Emerging as a tongue of the Vatnajökull, it ends in two lagoons, famous Jökulsárlón and smaller and less known Breiðárlón. Over time, it has gradually been breaking down.
Breiðamerkursandur is a glacial outwash plain in southeast Iceland. The area is mostly sand, although some vegetation is beginning to grow in the area.
Muldrow Glacier, also known as McKinley Glacier, is a large glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve in the U.S. state of Alaska. Native names for the glacier include, Henteel No' Loo' and Henteel No' Loot.
Cantwell Glacier is a glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve in the U.S. state of Alaska. The 3-mile (4.8 km) long glacier originates from the crest of the Alaska Range in the eastern part of the park, giving rise to Cantwell Creek. Cantwell Glacier and Cantwell Creek are named for Yukon Valley explorer John C. Cantwell.
Events in the year 1879 in Iceland.
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