Gudrun's photos with the keyword: Laki

A Hornito (literally: little oven) is a small turret shaped spattering/ degassing vent that develops in effusive eruptions. Hornitos are rootless, meaning they aren't fed from deep sources but from hot lava running in tubes not far from the surface. When pressure in the tubes gets too high the lava and gases break out in such vents. whc.unesco.org/en/list/1604 www.katlageopark.com/geosites/mainly-geology/lakagigar By the melting patterns in the 1st note and the volcanic glass in the 2nd you can see how hot and fluid the lava must have been.

After it had emptied of lava one of the craters in the Laki crater row filled with ground water. The note shows the depression where the lava ran off. In the bottom right corner of the main photo you can see what visitor pressure does to the vegetation. Now there's a new viewing platform and leaving the paths is strictly forbidden.

Brunahraun is lava from the northern Laki crater row that flew down to the coast following the the valley of Hverfisfljót river. The larger lava field Eldhraun www.ipernity.com/doc/523247/44215764 was created by flows from the southern crater row down Skaftá river valley. In the backgound are the cliffs of the former coastline. The lava itself is very difficult to cross because of the many cracks and sharp edges and anyway you shouldn't because the vegetation is easily damaged and takes decades to grow back. The lava is colonized by Racomitrium moss and wild thyme.

The old road through Eldhraun, the vast lava field created by the 1783/84 Laki eruption. Laki produced 14 km3 of basalt lava and emitted 22 megatons of SO2, producing 200 megatonnes H2SO4 aerosols (acid rain). This led to 2-3 years of surface cooling (-1,3°C) in the northern hemisphere. For months a volcanic haze obscured the sun over Northern and Central Europe. In Iceland 80% of sheep and 50% of cattle and horses died of fluorine poisoning, 20-25% of the population died of fluorine poisoning/ starvation. Priest Jón Steingrímsson of Kirkjubæjarklaustur documented the eruption in his diaries: "This past week, and the two prior to it, more poison fell from the sky than words can describe: ash, volcanic hairs, rain full of sulfur and saltpeter, all of it mixed with sand. The snouts, nostrils, and feet of livestock grazing or walking on the grass turned bright yellow and raw. All water went tepid and light blue in color and gravel slides turned gray. All the earth's plants burned, withered and turned gray, one after another, as the fire increased and neared the settlements." "The summer of acid rain": www.economist.com/node/10311405 Thordarson/Self- "Atmospheric and environmental effects of the 1783/ 1784 Laki eruption": seismo.berkeley.edu/~manga/LIPS/thordarson03.pdf

Skaftá valley with Fögrufjöll mountains in the background, seen from Lakagígar. During the Laki eruptions (1783/84) Skaftá river dried up completely as the lava shot down the valley into the lowlands. The phreatic explosions as hot lava reacted with water could be heard from far away. en.unesco.org/global-geoparks/katla

Another one from Laki, looking SW over Lambavatn and Kambavatn. de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laki-Krater www.vatnajokulsthjodgardur.is/en/areas/laki-eldgja-langisjor/plan-your-visit/laki

Part of the northern Laki crater row with Síðujökull (part of Vatnajökull) in the background. The Laki fissure eruption of 1783/84 was one of the greatest natural disasters of the last 1000 years. A total of 14,7 km³ of lava flowed from 130 vents, eventually covering 600km². 122 million tonnes of SO² and 15 million tonnes of fluorine were emitted. In Iceland 80% of sheep and over 50% of other livestock died of fluorine poisoning, more than 20% of Icelanders died of starvation. The poisonous cloud covered much of Europe as a dry fog, leading to high excess mortality, crop failures and famine. Temperatures dropped by an average of 1,3°C for 2-3 years, causing an extremely cold winter and enormous flooding after snow melt in spring. www.economist.com/christmas-specials/2007/12/19/the-summer-of-acid-rain whc.unesco.org/en/list/1604 de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laki-Krater

Part of the southern crater row. Moss has colonized the craters but even after nearly 240 years hardly anything grows in the ash. www.vatnajokulsthjodgardur.is/en/areas/laki-eldgja-langisjor/interpretation-and-knowledge/about-laki whc.unesco.org/en/list/1604

EXIF: Canon EOS 6D/ EF24-70mm f/4L IS USM/ 1/80 • f/8.0 • 38.0 mm • ISO 250 Fagrifoss (literally: the beautiful waterfall) is near Road F206 to the Laki craters. Here the river Geirlandsá drops 80m into a canyon which is shot through with basalt dykes