Situated in the Ódáðahraun

lava field Lava fields are large, mostly flat areas of surface or subaquatic lava flows. Such features are generally composed of highly fluid basalt lava, and can extend for tens or hundreds of miles across the underlying terrain. Morphology and stru ...

, Trölladyngja () is the biggest of the

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

shield volcano A shield volcano is a type of volcano named for its low profile, resembling a warrior's shield lying on the ground. It is formed by the eruption of highly fluid (low viscosity) lava, which travels farther and forms thinner flows than the more v ...

es, reaching a height of above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...

,Guide to Iceland - Information about Trölladyngja
Retrieved Apr. 23, 2019. and rising almost 600 metres above the surrounding

desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

and lava fields. It is about 10 kilometres in diameter and its inclination is 4 to 5° in the lower slopes, but 6 to 8° at higher elevations. Its oblong crater is about 1,200 to 1,500 metres in length, 500 metres broad, and about 100 metres deep. Most of its

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

fields have flowed in a northerly direction, with one branch of it reaching the valley of Bárðardalur, a distance of roughly 100 km. Reports of an eruption in 1961 at Trölladyngja are most likely attributed to nearby

Askja Caldera Askja () is an active volcano situated in a remote part of the central highlands of Iceland. The name Askja refers to a complex of nested calderas within the surrounding Dyngjufjöll mountains, which rise to , ''askja'' meaning ''box'' or '' ...

, which erupted the same year.American Journal of Science, ''The eruption in Askja, 1961; a preliminary report'' by Sigurdur Thorarinsson and G. E. Sigvaldason
Retrieved Apr. 23, 2019.

References

Mountains of Iceland Volcanoes of Iceland Holocene shield volcanoes Active volcanoes North Volcanic Zone of Iceland One-thousanders of Iceland Shield volcanoes of Iceland {{Iceland-geo-stub