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Tindfjallajökull
Glacier in Iceland From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Tindfjallajökull (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈtʰɪntˌfjatlaˌjœːkʏtl̥] ⓘ, alternatively Tindafjallajökull)[3] is a glacier in the south of Iceland whose name is also given to the underlying stratovolcano. Tindfjöll ([ˈtʰɪntˌfjœtl̥], "peak mountains") is a ridge that extends to the south of the glacier and is an alternative name for the volcano.[2]: 22 [4][5] The name of the glacier in Icelandic means "Tindfjöll glacier".
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Geography
Its highest peak is Ýmir [ˈiːmɪr̥] at 1,462 m (4,797 ft),[1][6] which takes its name from the giant Ýmir of Norse mythology. The peak Ýma is about 500 m (1,600 ft) to its east.[1] The Thórólfsfell (Þórólfsfel) tuya at 595 m (1,952 ft) is on the southern flanks of Tindfjallajökull, about 8 km (5.0 mi) south of the glacier.[1][7] Its eastern slopes abut the Þórsmörk ignimbrite.[2]: 29 The western flank has a prominence near Austurdalur and the eastern flank that of Vestriöxl at 1,002 m (3,287 ft).[2]: 24 [1] About 2 km (1.2 mi) to the north of Ýma is the peak of Sindri at 1,272 m (4,173 ft). Ásgrindur at 1,299 m (4,262 ft) is a similar distance north of Ýmir.
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Volcano
The central volcano is 15 to 20 km (9.3 to 12.4 mi) in diameter with a 5 by 7 km (3.1 by 4.3 mi) wide caldera and has erupted rocks of basaltic to rhyolitic composition.[5] The most recent eruption is suspected to have been in the Holocene,[4] and the prior mountain building eruptions must have been before 55,000 years ago.[8] There are eight tuyas in the volcanic system.[2]: 26 The largest, the asymmetric Thórólfsfell tuya with its area of about 8 km2 (3.1 sq mi) and prominence of about 450 m (1,480 ft) is the type tuya for tuya's where there is no evidence for the presence of a large and long-lived meltwater lake under the ice cover, as meltwater was able to drain away between its formative eruptions.[7] In the 1980's it was postulated that the Þórsmörk ignimbrite originated from the volcano but it originated from Torfajökull to the north.[2]: 27 [8] Sultarfell is a pale coloured rhyolitic hill in the fissure swarm north-east of Tindfjallajökull.[2]: 27 There is a hot spring in Hitagil to the south-east so some geothermal activity remains.[2]: 24
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Glacier
Summarize
Perspective
It is capped by a glacier that has been mapped to a maximum in the 1890's of about 22.6 km2 (8.7 sq mi) in area, but which by 2019 had had a 45% decrease in area. In 1945 to 1946 it was mapped to an area of 16.8 km2 (6.5 sq mi), in 2000 15 km2 (5.8 sq mi)[10] and 2019 12.4 km2 (4.8 sq mi).[9][10] The only current outlet glacier with a moraine is unnamed down the Eystri Botná valley but between 1994 and 2006[11] had surge glacier characteristics before regressing again. Part of the glacier to the north has now separated into three with one glacier being called Blesárjökull.[1] A small glacier on the eastern slopes of Ýma called Ýmujökull has disappeared.[1]
The rivers that flow from the glacier are Hvítmaga [ˈkʰvitˌmaːɣa] to the north-east, Gilsá [ˈcɪlsˌauː] to the south, Þórólfsá [ˈθouːroul(f)sˌauː] to the south-west, Valá [ˈvaːlˌauː] to the north-west and Blesá [ˈplɛːsˌauː] to the north. Hvítmaga, Gilsá and Þórólfsá drain into Markarfljót while Valá and Blesá drain into Eystri Rangá [ˈeistrɪ ˈrauŋkˌauː].
See also
References
External links
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