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Elephant Rock (Iceland)
Elephant Rock (Icelandic:Fíllinn) is a natural rock formation on the island of Heimaey, in the Westman Islands archipelago. It is made of basalt rock formed in a volcanic eruption of Eldfell. It is known for its shape which resembles the head of an elephant with its trunk in the water. References Geology of Iceland {{Iceland-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heimaey
Heimaey (), is an Icelandic island. At , it is the largest island in the Vestmannaeyjar archipelago, and the largest and most populated island off the Icelandic coast. Heimaey is off the south coast of Iceland. It is the only populated island of the Vestmannaeyjar islands, with a population of 4,414. The Vestmannaeyjar Airport and the Westman Islands Golf Club taken together cover a good portion of the island. In January 1973, lava flow from nearby Eldfell destroyed half the town and threatened to close its harbour, its main income source. An operation to cool the advancing lava with sea water saved the harbour. History Abducted from the north of Ireland, the slaves were called westmen (Vestmenn), as before discovering Iceland, Ireland was the most western part of the world known to northern Europeans then (c. 840). The slaves went ashore at Heimaey and took shelter in the hills. Ingólfur hunted them and killed them in revenge for their murdering his foster brother. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Westman Islands
Vestmannaeyjar (, sometimes anglicized as Westman Islands) is a municipality and archipelago off the south coast of Iceland. The largest island, Heimaey, has a population of 4,414, most of whom live in the archipelago's main town, Vestmannaeyjabær. The other islands are uninhabited, although six have single hunting cabins. Vestmannaeyjar came to international attention in 1973 with the eruption of Eldfell volcano, which destroyed many buildings and forced a month-long evacuation of the entire population to mainland Iceland. Approximately one-fifth of the town was destroyed before the lava flow was halted by application of 6.8billion litres of cold sea water. Geography The Vestmannaeyjar archipelago is young in geological terms. The islands lie in the Southern Icelandic Volcanic Zone and have been formed by eruptions over the past 10,000–12,000 years. The volcanic system consists of 70–80 volcanoes both above and below the sea. Vestmannaeyjar comprises the following isla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eldfell
Eldfell is a volcanic cone just over high on the Icelandic island of Heimaey. It formed in a volcanic eruption, which began without warning on the eastern side of Heimaey, in the Westman Islands, on 23 January 1973. The name means ''Hill of Fire'' in Icelandic. The eruption caused a major crisis for the island and led to its temporary evacuation. Volcanic ash fell over most of the island, destroying around 400 homes, and a lava flow threatened to close off the harbour, the island's main income source via its fishing fleet. An operation was mounted to cool the advancing lava flow by pumping sea water onto it, which was successful in preventing the loss of the harbour. After the eruption, the islanders used heat from the cooling lava flows to provide hot water and to generate electricity. They also used some of the extensive tephra, fall-out of airborne volcanic material to extend the runway at the island's small airport and as landfill on which 200 new houses were built. Bac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
