Hverfjall

Volcano in northern Iceland

65°36′00″N 16°53′00″W / 65.60000°N 16.88333°W / 65.60000; -16.88333GeographyLocationIcelandGeologyMountain typeTephra cone, tuff ring volcanoLast eruption2500 BP

Hverfjall (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈkʰvɛrˌfjatl̥] ^ⓘ; also known as Hverfell [ˈkʰvɛrˌfɛtl̥]) is a tephra cone or tuff ring volcano in northern Iceland, to the east of Mývatn.

It erupted in 2500 BP in the southern part of the Krafla fissure swarm.^[1] The crater is approximately 1 km in diameter.^[2]

Tephra has been carried from Hverfjall all over the Mývatn area. A landslide apparently occurred in the south part of the crater during the eruption, which accounts for the disruption to the round shape of the mountain.^{[citation needed]} During the Age of Settlement, lava flowed from Svörtuborgir [ˈsvœr̥tʏˌpɔrcɪr̥], at the southern end of Námafjall [ˈnauːmaˌfjatl̥], around Hverfjall, which was nearly engulfed by the lava. At the same time an eruption occurred in the slopes above the valley of Hlíðardalur [ˈl̥iːðarˌtaːlʏr̥].^{[citation needed]}

The rim of the crater is only accessible by two paths, from the northwest and south. It is strictly forbidden to use other routes in ascent or descent.

References

^ The Hverfjall fissure eruption Archived 2011-07-28 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 29 October 2008
^ Rough Guide on Hverfjall^{[permanent dead link]} Accessed 29 October 2008