Contents PREFACE. 5 INTRODUCTION: THE GEOLOGIC FRAMEWORK OF ICELAND. 8 MODERN DAY TECTONIC SETTING. 10 BACKGROUND GEOLOGY. 11 CHAPTER 1. OVERVIEW OF TECTONICS ON THE REYKJANES PENINSULA AND SOUTHWESTERN REGION. 15 1.1 Krýsuvík Valley and Lake Kleifarvatn.

17 1.2 Blue Lagoon and Geothermal Energy. 18 1.3 Mid Ocean Ridge/Grindavik. 19 1.4 Þingvillir/Hengill 20 1.5 Geysir/Gulfoss/Selfoss. 23 Gulfoss.

24 Outset Box 1.1 Hellisheiði Geothermal Power Station- Emily Larrimore. 25 CHAPTER 2. OVERVIEW OF TECTONICS IN THE SOUTH AND SOUTHEASTERN REGIONS. 28 2.1 Faults and Fault Complexes of the Tertiary Basalts. 31 CHAPTER 3. OVERVIEW OF TECTONICS IN THE NORTHEASTERN REGION.

33 3.1 Flateyjarskagi and Tjörnes Peninsulas. 35 3.2 Lake Mývtan and Mývtan Fires. 37 3.3 Krafla Fires. 39 3.4 Detifoss/Selfoss.

40 Outset Box 3.1 The Miocene and Pliocene fossils of the Tjörnes Peninsula. 41 CHAPTER 4. OVERVIEW OF TECTONICS IN THE WESTERN REGION. 45 4.1 Snaefellnes Syncline and Borgarfjörður Anticline. 46 VOLCANICS OVERVIEW. 48 VOLCANIC MORPHOLOGY.

51 Stratovolcanoes and associated features. 51 Shield volcanoes and associated features. 52 SUBGLACIAL ERUPTIONS. 54 Subglacial features. 55 TEPHRACHRONOLOGY. 57 VOLCANIC REPOSE. 58 VOLCANIC EXPLOSIVITY INDEX. 59 CHAPTER 5.

OVERVIEW OF VOLCANICS ON THE REYKJANES PENINSULA AND SOUTHWESTERN REGION. 62 5.1 Volcanism of the Western Volcanic Zone. 62 5.2 Volcanism of the Reykjanes Peninsula. 64 5.3 Esja Mountain and extinct volcanic systems (Kollafjörður amd Stardalur). 66 5.

4 Rauðhólar Rootless cone complex. 66 5.5 Hengill and hingvillir. 67 CHAPTER 6. OVERVIEW OF VOLCANICS IN THE SOUTH AND SOUTHEASTERN REGIONS. 69 6.1 Grímsvötn, Bárðarbunga, and Kverkfjökull 72 6.2 Katla and Eyjafjallajökull 76 6.

3 Eldgjá and Laki (Skaftár) Fires. 83 6.4 Dyrhólaey lava cave. 86 6.5 Hekla- The Queen. 87 6.6 jórsárdalur Valley. 91 6.

7 Surtsey volcanic island. 93 CHAPTER 7. OVERVIEW OF VOLCANICS IN THE NORTH AND NORTHEASTERN REGIONS. 98 7.1 The Dynáufjöll massif complex and Askja. 100 The Askja 1874-1876 Event. 103 The Askja 1961 Event and Today. 106 7.

2 Krafla. 109 The Krafla Fires of 1975-1984. 111 Krafla and Geothermal Energy. 114 7.3 Volcanic Features at Mývtan. 117 7.4 Tinná Central Volcano and other extinct volcanoes in the region. 123 CHAPTER 8.

OVERVIEW OF VOLCANICS IN THE WESTERN REGION. 126 8.1 The Snæfellsjökull Volcanic System: A Journey to the Center. 128 8.2 Ljósufjöll 132 8.3 Helgrindur. 134 8.4 Vatnshellir Lava Tube.

134 Outset Box 8.1 Living with Volcanoes- Emily Larrimore. 135 GLACIAL HISTORY OVERVIEW. 139 MODERN CLIMATE OVERVIEW. 144 GLACIAL MORPHOLOGY. 147 Formation of ice. 147 Glaciers and associated landforms. 148 Periglacial environments and associated landforms.

152 Glacial mass balance. 152 Glaciation and Volcanics. 156 CHAPTER 9. OVERVIEW OF GLACIATION ON THE REYKJANES PENINSULA AND SOUTHWESTERN REGION. 158 9.1 Langjökull 159 9.2 Hofsjökull 163 9.3 Kerlingarfjöll 166 Outset Box 9.

1: The use of oxygen isotopes as climate change indicators - Emily Larrimore. 167 Outset Box 9.2: Oxygen Isotope Fractionation - Emily Larrimore. 169 CHAPTER 10. OVERVIEW OF GLACIATION IN THE SOUTH AND SOUTHEASTERN REGIONS. 172 10.1 Vatnajökull 177 10.2 Breiðárlón and Jökulsárlón.

180 10.3 Lakes under the ice: Grímsvötn, Kverjökull, and Barðarbunga. 182 10.4 Eyjafjallajökull 190 CHAPTER 11. OVERVIEW OF GLACIATION IN THE NORTHERN AND WESTERN REGIONS. 193 11.1 Vestfirðir Peninsula and Drangajökull 197 11.2 Tröllaskagi and Skagi Peninsulas and Norðurlandsjöklar.

204 11.3 Snæsfellnes Peninsula and Snaefellsjökull 208 Outset Box 11.1 Snow-avalanches and debris-flows- Tamie Jovanelly. 210 FIGURES, TABLES, PHOTOS. 212 GLOSSARY. 324 REFERENCES. 337.