volcano Archives – Malaspina Naturalists

Glyn Williams-Jones – “Mt. Meager Volcano”
by Tom Koleszar, 13 Feb 2020.

Glyn is the Chair of the SFU Department of Earth Sciences & Co-Director of the Centre for Natural Hazards Research. His talk was all about the Mt. Meager volcano which lies near the upper Pemberton Valley, only 115 km NE of Powell River. During his visit to Powell River, Glyn also spoke to the emergency planning committee of the Qathet Regional District.

Glyn gave us an overview of the Mt. Meager complex and its most recent eruption 2360 years ago, which was comparable in size and style to the Mt. St. Helens 1980 eruption. He then covered the recent (2010) landslide and the potential for much bigger future slides in the Mt. Meager area. These are very significant natural hazards!

The volcano is currently degassing, with three new fumaroles having recently opened through the ice cover.

Given its relative proximity to populated areas, Mt Meager is the focus of much current research, including ice mapping, numerical modelling, subsurface imaging, and activity monitoring. And it may even become a NASA test site, testing equipment for missions to icy outer solar system moons!

Fire, Ice, Water…
– Peter Hartree

…with a surprising amount of Green
– M. Koleszar

The geological context of Iceland is interesting – it’s the only place where a volcanic “Hot Spot” coincides with the Mid-Atlantic Ridge
– Ricker et al (2013)

This is “The Table”, just south of Garibaldi Lake, BC. “Tuyas” are circular, flat-topped volcanic constructs found in many locations around the world, most notably in Iceland, Siberia, Antarctica, and BC.
– Andre Charland

Mark’s thesis was about the formation of Tuyas. In a nutshell, they’e not all created equally…and it gets complicated in a hurry
– Þórðarson (2008)

Base camp. This is about as remote as you can get
– M. Koleszar

The morning commute
– M. Koleszar

Because of geography, the island of Heimaey always had a pretty good natural harbor.
– M. Koleszar

Which was made even more sheltered by the volcanic eruption of 1973!
– M. Koleszar

Iceland is pretty windy. This erosion was caused by pebbles swirling around in what eventually became a fairly substantial pit!
– M. Koleszar

This is Seljalandsfoss waterfall…you can walk behind it!
– M. Koleszar

Gullfoss (“Golden Falls”) was the site of a proposed hydrolectric project in the 1950s. It is now protected, and one of the most popular tourist attractions in Iceland.
– M. Koleszar

Incredible
– M. Koleszar

Iceland is otherworldly…and gorgeous
– M. Koleszar

The”Krafla fires” lasted from 1975-1984 and represented a significant volcanic “extension event”
– Sigurður Þórarinsson

This looks to be a pretty lonely ranch. The sheep might help.
– M. Koleszar

This is the last landfal before reaching Antarctica…about 15,000 km further south
– M. Koleszar

Resiliance
– M. Koleszar

Resiliance #2
– M. Koleszar

Birding is popular in Iceland
– T. Koleszar

Common Murres (Uria aalge)
– T. Koleszar

Atlantic Puffins (Fratercula arctica)
– M. Koleszar

American Oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus)
– U. Koleszar

Iceland Ponies
– U. Koleszar

This is Grímsvötn (“Grim Waters”), which erupted beneath a glacier in May of 2011, disrupting air traffic throughout northern Europe.
– Páll Stefánsson

Mark’s Powerpoint presentation described this as “The continental divide”. He knows more that I.
For me…it’s just stunning.
– M. Koleszar

Mark Koleszar – “Geological tales of Iceland”
by Andrew Bryant, 17 Oct 2019.

Mark recently completed his Masters thesis at the University of Iceland, entitled “Flat-topped volcanic edifices in Vonarskarð, Central Iceland, and on the Kolbeinsey Ridge“. You can learn more about his research here, or read his full thesis here.

Geology is one thing. Iceland is something else.

Over the course of three years, Mark got to visit places that few humans have ever seen – indeed his principal field study areas are about as remote as it gets. Iceland is a place of wonder; waterfalls, volcanoes, ponies and puffins. And Mark (and family) are very talented photographers.

So I think it best to let the images speak for themselves.