Ljósufjöll

Ljósufjöll
Highest point
Elevation 988 m (3,241 ft)
Geography
Location Iceland
Geology
Mountain type Fissure vents
Last eruption 960 CE ± 10 years[1]

Ljósufjöll is a fissure vent system and central volcano on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula in Iceland. The system has a length of about 90 km reaching from the lavafields Berserkjahraun on the northside of Snæfellsnes to the village Bifröst and the nearby Grábrók craters next to the no. 1 highway (hringvegur) north of Borgarnes.

The volcanic system contains cinder cones and is the only system on the peninsula that has erupted in recorded history. The eruption took place in the 12th century (1148) and cost the lives of around 80 people. One of them was the then bishop of Skálholt, Magnús Einarsson.

The name derives from the central volcano and translates into English as "Mountains of the Light". The system is the largest Quaternary rhyolitic outcrop in the Snæfellsnes volcanic zone and as such the central volcano is highly silicic which causes the light coloration.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Global Volcanism Project, Ljósufjöll, Summary". volcano.si.edu. Retrieved 21 April 2013.

Coordinates: 64°52′N 22°14′W / 64.87°N 22.23°W / 64.87; -22.23

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