Why is There a Huge Eruption in Iceland? Science is Figuring Out the Volcanic Mystery

[@Sindrijo]

The video fails to mention that one person has died, a rescue worker fell into a hidden crack in Grindavík that suddenly opened beneath him, his body was not recoverable as the Earth has claimed it. His name was Lúðvík Pétursson, born on 22nd august 1973 and went missing 10th of January 2024. Rest in peace.

[@TrumpetMaster007]

Lol what rescue worker. That man was working for a company not part of any rescue team.

[@lucianalliancestargate6475]

I'm sorry for your loss.

[@shaunpapworth4269]

Rest in peace Mr Lúðvík Pétursson 💐❤

[@nlwilson4892]

I think this documentary was made before that death. Also, the ground didn't suddenly open up, the crack was there and they were trying to repair the road.

[@sigisoltau6073]

​@@nlwilson4892It was made after. At the 1:38 mark lava is flowing over the road leading in and out of the Blue Lagoon area, on the north side of it. That's the February 8 eruption that covered the road and destroyed the hot water pipes.

[@conceptinterface]

Video production note: The captioning uses a creative "magma wave" effect, but since it sweeps UP, the caption is readable only at the bottom at first. By the time the effect is done, the beginning of the caption is only visible for a few seconds. Though pretty, this effect should sweep DOWN, so the viewer can read the text in the order that we read text!

[@jespervanderkaa6759]

Agreed yes. I found the choice of the reversed effect quite odd. The video is very interesting and educational though. Very well put together.

[@conceptinterface]

@@jespervanderkaa6759 Yes, a very interesting and well-produced video with good content. I imagine that the text effect was intended to evoke the rise of lava through the surface. But form usually should follow function!

[@Vito_Tuxedo]

Actually, the ill-conceived choice of the text effect (displaying from bottom to top) is typical of the gradual decline in quality of Scientific American content over the last 60 years.

[@eecarolinee]

@@Vito_Tuxedo I subscribed to SciAm as a 7th grader in the 1960s. Yes.. their quality has diminished.. and they are getting more and more woke and therefore political and superstitious. Wokeness is profound ignorance and outright superstition thinking itself wise and superior.... to the point of censoring all other concepts. Wokeness is the same mentality that fueled the Inquisition and the Salem Witch trials. Or so it seems to me.

[@SparkyOne549]

I didn’t notice anything unusual about the text. I didn’t have trouble reading anything.

[@fairviewtv]

The blur-wipe on the subtitles was totally annoying and unnecessary

[@MarieJackson-sp3be]

It also made for less time to read the text.

[@maramé.r]

Interesting video. Sometimes hard to understand what is being said as oddly there seems to be a noisy orchestra practising and tuning up nearby

[@artysanmobile]

Never let up on this amateurish production flaw. I see it all the time on KZbin. There are ‘rules’ that exist for excellent reasons and beginners think they have a better idea. Music OR dialog. OR, not AND.

[@MaddyN999]

Nice recap of what’s been happening with a look inside the Met Office. Great drone footage by Isak!

[@momsilk6072]

I'd recognize Isak Finnbogason's drone footage anywhere... Spectacular footage!

[@jpsholland]

But it is not credited, so it is stolen.

[@schamka]

@@jpsholland 24:39 credits

[@IcelandFPV]

Thank you! They did not steal my work, they paid for it and you will find my name there in the credit list🙂

[@juju9410]

Thank you for a very informative documentary told by the people and experts in Iceland. It’s heartbreaking to see the town of Grindavik being damaged and destroyed. I hope its residents can find peace, happiness and stability in time.

[@tegneren]

Whoever thought it was a good idea to fade in the on-screen text blocks from the bottom up needs to find a new job. Having to wait to start reading is really annoying and distracts from the otherwise good video

[@rdallas81]

I thought it was wonderful.

[@jimmiller1686]

i often wonder if videos are vetted by their creators before being posted. i doubt it.

[@Mark-fl3kx]

I find it very annoying too

[@artysanmobile]

The entire video is an example of how NOT to produce content. You’d think, hey Scientific American knows what they’re doing…. Well, no, apparently not.

[@GeneralCostache]

Not only was I going to write the same comment, but I would have used the exact same words.

[@domcizek]

GET RID OF THE BLUR ON WHAT WE CAN READ, VERY DISTRACTING

[@gregwilvert]

The way you blur the first line of text is weird

[@rdallas81]

It's awesome

[@susantrott3338]

This was excellent! I would love to see more, based on the most recent eruption which was the most powerful and largest. If you can continue this story, I would watch! You have presented the information clearly and it has given me a better understanding of the situation and I've learned a lot. So thank you very much.

[@Horsemom121]

Interesting video! Thank you! Next, I am going to watch a video by Shawn Willsey. He has a bunch of videos about Iceland. Love Shawn! He explains things really well.

[@quake_er1149]

I really enjoy his videos too! He explains in terms that even a lay person can understand. Very down to earth

[@lucadegerth6665]

Bravo👏🏻 best documantary i've seen in a long time. Good job Micah💪

[@Hraesvelg]

Fascianting documentary and great interviewees. Really well produced.

[@SJR_Media_Group]

I live in Washington State... watching flood basalt coming out of fissures is good way to visualize what happened here 16 million years ago. Our lava traveled hundreds of miles from our eastern borders all the way to Pacific Ocean. It was not witnessed by humans because they didn't exist then. Looking at many separate flows, and over a mile thick... it is almost too big to comprehend...

[@SJR_Media_Group]

@@vixeliaOG Thanks for comment and information...

[@ron_m21]

​@@vixeliaOGtitle?

[@HumanitarianV4VGlobal]

Devastated for the residents of Grindavik 🥺🙏

[@MrMdamon808]

Great report but the way that the subtitles and text were done was terrible. Why on earth would someone create subtitles in which only the second half of each line is visible to start with? It makes the text a nightmare to read. Because the eye is drawn to the recognizable letters first. Only to find that they not the beginning of the sentence, making the eye scan back over the first half of each line after it resolves. It is genuinely exhausting to read.

[@brianpriest2930]

Where I live (Midwest USA) it easy to forget how dynamic the earth is . The endless plains around me don’t change in any obvious way, yet everything I see and know is constantly moving (North American plate). We deal with tornadoes, yet the out gassing from volcanic activity affects the atmosphere. It’s shocking to learn that at one point Yellowstone (Wyoming, MT and ID) was fairly tropical. Our journey on this plate has been occurring long before we got here and will occur long after we’re gone. Yes, the planet is very dynamic.

[@imann6355]

Very informative, thanks for the great video

[@nikomurtomaki3504]

Laki wasn't a satellite system of the Katla volcano; rather a fissure vent of the Grimsvötn volcano located closest to the icelandic hotspot!

[@alexhope212009]

How much worse would these erruptions need to get before Iceland becomes unlivable I wonder, if anything like the historic island building eruptions they are not stopping anytime soon.

[@teamhadd5235]

Why the weird thing with the subtitles?

[@sbaumgartner9848]

Excellent. Watching a volcano erupt is mesmerizing. However we have to remember it can be deadly for humans and nature.

[@louisea966]

great video, amazing footage, love Isak Finnbogason's drone work!

[@odilejouanne4323]

Thanks a lot for this recap. Very well done ! Congrats and stay safe❤

[@joelark2007]

Stayed in hotel grindavik before this went off hope the owner and his family are ok great food at their restaurant above the rooms be safe

[@VicVegaTW]

this is interesting but your music is too intense

[@rdallas81]

Not intense enough

[@nlwilson4892]

I was really interested in this, but had to stop watching, the "music" playing when I'm trying to listen to people speak is just too annoying and makes it hard to follow. The blurred captions that fade in from the bottom just add to the irritation.

[@rdallas81]

We Joy be goy. Nee Floy the key soy Boy

[@maxblair3317]

Great documentary! Very interesting timing as well, as there is yet another volcanic event happening right now at the Reykjaness peninsula!

[@robertslugg8361]

The Nick Zentner town hall video series from 8-10 years ago is a great introduction to geological processes. Pretty much everything geologically has happened in Oregon and Washington. Driving through the Columbia Gorge one can see a vertical kilometer of multiple basaltic flows over the last 20 miliion years. It really puts things on a different scale. What is happening on the Penninsula is a geological burp at best.

[@gabbyn978]

You forgot one thing. Like Hawaii, Iceland is at the top of a hot spot (not only these two tectonic plates pulling apart). This why this place is above the water. And that also means, there is a volcanic building below the island. Close to the south eastern coastline, the ocean floor drops by 1300 meters, a bit further out it is 1600 meters, that is close to a mile. This happened in a timespan of 17 to 20 million years. Sounds familiar, eh?

[@mostlyvoid.partiallystars]

Nick’s lectures are fantastic

[@glenlongstreet7]

I am happy that the geologists are talking about the plates. One side of Iceland is on the Eurasian plate and the other side is on the American plate. The question is, why are these plates are moving up and down. I am certainly not a geologist, but I can't help but think about what is happening next door in Greenland. Greenland is very big and very heavy, and that is changing. How many tons of water have flowed off of the Greenland icesheets every day for the past few decades? There is nothing we can do about that. So let us imagine that we can do something, imagine being the key word. I feel very bad for the inhabitants of the two cities that are being affected, but it would probably be best if you moved to somewhere else. Your life is more valuable than your house.

[@melodiefrances3898]

It's kind of creepy to think about what is happening in Greenland and its possible repercussions beyond the island itself.

[@kennethloki7011]

The mid-Atlantic rift goes right through Iceland. The plates aren't going up and down, they're spreading apart. As that happens, it creates a path for magma to rise. In Iceland, it's creating more land. But on the ocean floor, it's creating new crust.

[@martenrange1940]

Thanks for a very interesting story.

[@Science4Real]

Me: "2023 is finally drama-free!" Iceland: grabs my drink and erupts 🌋😂

[@michaelnaretto3409]

It's sad those people have to probably permanently leave their homes. Mother Nature can be cruel....

[@corlisscrabtree3647]

Thank you 🙏🏼

[@Dragrath1]

First I should note that there are a few other places where mid ocean ridge segments are exposed to the surface though both are more atypical events associated with ongoing continental rifting within subsiding rift basins only kept dry by the aridity of Southern California USA, Baja California Mexico and east Africa. There is also evidence from seismic tomography that the slow sheer velocity discontinuity associated with the Juan de Fuca ridge and East Pacific Rise takes a more extensive dive beneath North America likely connecting it to the Basin and Range and Colorado plateau activity but this is a very complex and unusual setting even if it too shows eruptive clustering in time for example the 7 lava domes of the Salton Buttes volcanos most recent eruptive period seem likely to have occurred within an interval of around 500 years the last occurring a little less than 2000 years ago. Core drilling shows there are older eruptive periods but the subsidence and sediment deposition into the Salton sea basin has buried them so its hard to piece out past cycles but it seems to behave in a similar manner to a lesser degree. As for the Laki eruption it appears to have been a fissure eruption associated with the Mid Atlantic Ridge that occurred along the Faultline where Grimsvotn's main magma chamber resides which is entirely basaltic in composition unlike many of the volcanoes of central and or northeastern Iceland. Its behavior was smaller and less explosive than Kaltla's Eldgjá eruption of ~938 which involved the mixing and discharge of Kaltla's rhyolitic magma chamber via a series of Plinian and Sub Plinian phases and the large climatically devastating . Luckily there is no sustained central volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula so the rest of a similar event here seems quite unlikely without a large central volcanoes magma chamber to evacuate It is also incorrect to state that the Earth is molten beneath our feet it seems melt generation is only present in a narrow window before eruptive activity. The one fatality was also not mentioned neither was the disconnection of hot water from the power plant with the only footage of the February eruption appearing to just get tacked on at the end suggesting the program was largely completed before these events with minor addition tacked on at the end.

[@Petrvsco]

You got many things right but missed some others. Yes, the earth is not a molten ball covered by solid crust. It is a shame that Sci. Amer. Is helping propagate that piece of misinformation. On the other hand magma forms way deeper (~100 to 200 km) and migrates upwards to feed volcanic systems (not all magmas break the surface). Last, the main reason iceland exists is that there is a mantle plume that intersects the ridge. Hawaii is a great example of a mantle plume: it is far away from any plate boundary. Iceland is a combination of both: ridge and plume. Really bad also that Sci. Amer. Was unable to get that straight.

[@jpsholland]

which mystery?

[@gabbyn978]

How old is this documentation, nine months? Meanwhile the landscape has been drastically altered by masses of lava, in some places more than 50 feet in thickness.

[@Petrvsco]

Your point? What do you expect? To never do the documentary because eruptions are ongoing? It is a very good time stamp of the situation when it was released won’t you think?

[@gabbyn978]

@@Petrvsco There is RÚV which is a reliable source. And up to date. They have an english section. Check it out.

[@LeifurHakonarson]

Don't forget that if it weren't for volcanism there wouldn't be an Iceland - just sea bottom (much like Hawaii). It's a love-hate relationship if ever there was one 🙂

[@baomao7243]

I always ponder something similar when i visit Japan and find myself looking at a nuclear power station. Nuclear power sounds like such a great, safe idea. But then you realize building a Nuclear power plant in Japan (i.e., “on top of a volcano” feels MUCH less safe. Earthquakes every day in Japan and yet here we are - millions of lives - hoping “not today” about a major seismic/volcanic event.

[@Mieke..]

That's awesome! 🧡👍

[@leemccabemccabe5627]

Iceland Home Delivery ❤️ 💯 👍

[@poetmaggie1]

Iceland's volcanos are not a mystery. Its 2 Continental plates running away from each other. There is nothing to solve and nothing to do about it.

[@Petrvsco]

Well, you are wrong. The two plates are separating all through the middle of the Atlantic, but volcanoes above sea level only happen in Iceland. Regardless, the “mystery” part is having a reasonable way to predict time and magnitude of the next eruptions to come.

[@AngelineThompson-w1o]

It’s a spirit

[@thedonof1]

Not a whole lot of science here. more personal stories

[@melodiefrances3898]

I was expecting a lot more science tbh ... oh well.

[@skeggiskjeldarson6639]

In Iceland this is called a tourist eruption. The Eyafjalla eruption 2010 var not regarded as huge. But of course for novices and unexperienced people.....

[@Petrvsco]

The 2021 was a “tourist eruption”. I was away from Grindavik and any significant infrastructure. At most there were concerns it could cross the road and damage one farm before eventually draining to the sea. The current eruption near Grindavik is NOT a “tourist eruption” IMO.

[@leemccabemccabe5627]

The Earth's Core !

[@petramaas8574]

Title "Science is solving Iceland's dangerous volcano mystery" is just click bait. Maybe somewhere near the end, but after 5 minutes of a lot of people producing short bursts of speech with very little consistency, I've seen enough.

[@deadastronaut2440]

The current eruption/s in Reykjanes Iceland is actually very small, contrary to the sensational, and ironically very unscientific headline for this video. For comparison the Holuhraun eruption ten years ago was ten times bigger and the Laki eruption in 1784 was even bigger.

[@Darin970]

It's the speed of our planet spinning that causes friction in the center of the planet that causes the rock to melt into magma

[@shadygremlin9702]

Creating a New Land ?

[@sirensynapse5603]

Mystery? Volcanos go boom. This is known.

[@Iskandar64]

I was expecting more science - disappointed!

[@omamale69]

Sadly, I haven't learned anything new from this video

[@helenaziegler6005]

Iceland is a mid-ocean ridge plus a hot-spot, thus the uplift is remarkable, the area became subaerial and could be inhabited. Basically, it is a wonderful open-air laboratory. The mantle below is very productive in terms of magma genesis.

[@Petrvsco]

Underrated comment! Yes, and it is unfortunate this documentary missed such important piece of information. Clearly they did not have a real geologist as advisor.

[@arnesundstrom302]

Unbearable music,i quit

[@robertfindley921]

Such an interesting video and only one comment (now 2). Maybe if they got Taylor Swift to narrate it

[@DavidKJohnson1988]

The video had just been posted. Maybe give people a chance to see it first?

[@Darin970]

Volcanoes is what made our planet the size that it is and it also made the atmosphere around it🙂😇

[@gabrielehanne580]

Do you understand though what the earth is trying to tell humans ? This is an important lesson . Pay attention . Look at the images ! What comes to mind? Mankind is being given a crucial clue .

[@Petrvsco]

I’m dumb. What’s the lesson that is so obvious to you?

[@yousifatobiya7279]

Abstract : The energy that dominates the earth is very great, some of it is natural, like the heat of the sun and volcanoes, and some of it is human action, by cutting down trees, without replacing them and cultivating in their place... There are five forces that control or dominate the planet... 1- The first theory (horizontal dynamic movement) and its end... The occurrence of storms, rain, floods and snow, at unexpected times and places, is because of the expiration of this theory, which needs to be balanced... 2- The second theory (vertical dynamic movement) and its end... This movement or force controls or dominates the earthquakes, earth cracks, drying up of rivers and lakes, earth openings, mountain collapses, and the emergence of drinking water springs on the ground... It becomes out of control... These phenomena increased due to the end of this theory... The third theory: it is water that rotates the earth... The fourth theory: the Earth's axis of rotation has tilted 2° degrees... The fifth theory: The Earth has a new orbit... These studies had completed and sent on July 26th 2000 YOUSIF A TOBIYA

[@Petrvsco]

Dude, you are delusional. Those are wild dreams not “theories”. You are more an illusionist than a scientist. Where is your evidence and reasoned argument?

[@yousifatobiya7279]

@Petrvsco I hope to hold a scientific conference at the University of Melbourne to explain and document my theories..

[@yousifatobiya7279]

@Petrvsco Unfortunately: There are many about science, and very few of them are scientists...

[@Petrvsco]

@ yourself included? (among those that pretend to know). I’m still skeptical and considering you as a very good troll. That would be a better reality than you being a disconnected and delusional person. By the way, there was a time I would ignore comments like yours, but incoherent ideas that are unopposed seem to eventually gain traction.

[@Petrvsco]

@ That would be great. Some interesting ideas appear at first crazy. Eventually logic and evidence make them real possibilities. At this stage what you have are ideas. Not theories or hypotheses, but loose ideas. The next step is to figure out how to test them.

[@yousifatobiya7279]

The occurrence of stoms,rains,ice, and floods at times and in unexpected places,confirms my theory the end of the (dynamic horizontal movement )which needs to balance and it sill under control to balance... But about earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, sinkholes, tsunami, dry lakes and rivers, flow of water from the mountains and hills,explodeand of eyes water from the ground, formation of new mountains or islands, collaps of mountains ,and cracks on ground,& ,& ,&,they are out of control or balance... Note :The earth will become like Venus... Yousif A Tobiya

[@Petrvsco]

You don’t have a “theory” you have a hunch. Maybe you could call it a hypothesis, but before you convince yourself, or anybody, that you are right you need to test your ideas and find evidence supporting your reasoning. The world does not necessarily work like you imagine it, just because you think it does.

[@yousifatobiya7279]

@Petrvsco I wasted my life and everything I owned for knowledge, to serve the earth and humanity... Yousif A Tobiya

[@Petrvsco]

@ well, sorry to be the beared if bad news, but if what you wrote is the sum of your knowledge, then indeed you wasted a bit chunk of your life approaching knowledge without a coherent system. I hope there are other dimensions of your life that fared better.

[@robertmoye7565]

Well, the headline for the video is a lie isn't it? There was nothing about "Solving Iceland's Dangerous Volcanic Mystery", was there? This kind of pathetic false flag promotion is unworthy of Scientific American, a once great institution.

[@MyKharli]

Is Scientific American still going ? i dumped them after their shameless fossil fuel coverage . `Were living in interesting times ` aka a climate catastrophe partially enabled by publishers like SA

[@yousifatobiya7279]

I give you the reasons, and the solutions... Who knows the reasons, knows the solutions... Any natural phenomenon must be balanced naturally... I am very sorry to say that the time is going to be over, and on some phenomenons is over... There is a lot around sciences, but very few of them scientists... This kind of people will lead people to the loss of land and their future... Yousif A Tobiya Forcibly displaced

[@AngelineThompson-w1o]

Child abusing The Holy Spirit Is making thugs poor They know no age It’s a sin

[@yousifatobiya7279]

Thousands of scientific letters were sent to all parts of the world, warning them to stop the melting of the ice caps at the poles and the Himalayas, to reduce earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and terrestrial eclipses, and and and... Yousif A Tobiya

[@RalphWhittington]

Move y sad people don't live on volcano how sad r people on Iceland got to live on volcano

[@RalphWhittington]

It's only volcano u live on one so don't worry about it don't live on volcano 🌋 so move

[@CStoph1979]

Did you know the earth grows? It wasn't always this size. What we are seeing now are just the beginnings of the next stage. Enough focused energy at the core of the earth could create mass. Einstein said so. Explains things a lot better than floating continents imho.

[@melodiefrances3898]

Since you are obviously thinking about this I strongly recommend you start reading up on it. The evidence for the moving plates is extremely compelling.

[@rdallas81]

The earth doesn't grow to any significant amount. A few comets here and there

[@CStoph1979]

@@rdallas81 Wrong.

[@b.a.erlebacher1139]

No, mass is not created from nothingness in the center of the earth. Einstein never said any such thing.

[@Petrvsco]

Interesting. You are either a troll, hoping to get lots of comments by saying something outrageous or the most delusional person commenting so far. I wonder what other crazy ideas you have in your head that you are 100% convinced are “true” just because you are unable to consider that you may be wrong.