The volcanic system by Krýsuvík on Reykjanes peninsula in Southwest Iceland is closer to the capital than any other volcano and would likely have significant impact on the area in the case of an eruption: damage roads, hot and cold water pipes and electricity cables.

Krýsuvík. Photo: Eygló Svala Arnarsdóttir/Iceland Review.

This was stated in a lecture by geologists Kristján Jónasson and Sigmundur Einarsson at the Icelandic Institute of Natural History last week, ruv.is reports.

The Krýsuvík volcanic system is characterized by a 50-kilometer long rift, stretching from Grindavík on Reykjanes, through Hafnarfjörður, Reykjavík and to the rural Mosfellssveit area outside Mosfellsbær.

By the seashore in Grindavík the rift has a width of ten meters but narrows to two to four meters where it ends in Mosfellssveit.

A narrow 30-kilometer volcanic vent follows the rift from Grindavík to Hafnarfjörður.

The last eruption in the Krýsuvík volcanic system was in the 12th century when lava flowed to the ocean both on the southern and northern coast of Reykjanes peninsula.

The original Krýsuvík was filled with lava and a lava field created as a result of the eruption, Kapelluhraun, reaches Straumsvík by Hafnarfjörður. The eruption also caused changes to the fracture zone south of the capital region.

The Krýsuvík volcanic system is observed closely but there are no indications of an imminent eruption.

Volcanologist Haraldur Sigurðsson wrote about a possible eruption in Krýsuvík and the consequences for Reykjavík and the surrounding area in the third issue of Iceland Review in 2012.

ESA