Hekla.jpg (8711 bytes) Hekla1.jpg (8530 bytes)

Hekla Volcano in Iceland erupted in late February and early March 2000. A swarm of earthquakes and changes in strain recorded on monitors near the volcano provided a one-hour warning of the eruption. Hekla is an active stratovolcano with a summit ridge that gives it an elongated shape like an overturned boat. The photo on the left (copyright Gisli Oskarsson) was taken the first night of the eruption and several vents are visible on the 6 km fissure along the summit ridge of Hekla. The photo on the right (copyright Sigurjon Sindrason), taken on February 29, shows the same general view looking west during daylight. The black areas are new lava flows that have melted the snow.

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