Hekla

Hekla is an active stratovolcano in southern Iceland, notable for frequent eruptions and a prominent place in Icelandic folklore.

Connect

Stratovolcano: A steep-sided volcano built from successive deposits of lava, ash, and other volcanic material. Hekla’s layered cone gives it the profile of this volcano type.
Hekla 1104 eruption: A major explosive eruption of Hekla in 1104 that deposited tephra across large parts of Iceland. Its deposits document the scale of one of Hekla’s best-known medieval eruptions.
Mid-Atlantic Ridge: A submarine mountain range marking the divergent boundary between the Eurasian and North American plates. Hekla lies in Iceland’s active rift zone, where this ridge rises above sea level.
Purgatory: In several Christian traditions, a state or place of purification after death before entry into heaven. Medieval accounts linked Hekla’s eruptions with souls undergoing punishment and purification.
Subduction zone: A region where one tectonic plate sinks beneath another into Earth’s mantle. Subduction beneath Iceland contributes to the magma feeding Hekla.
Hekla 1947 eruption: A major Hekla eruption that began in 1947 and continued through 1948 with explosive and lava-producing phases. It provides a well-documented modern example of Hekla’s mixed eruptive behavior.
Iceland: An island country in the North Atlantic formed by volcanic activity at a plate boundary and mantle plume. Hekla’s geology and cultural history are rooted in Iceland.
Hell: A place or state of punishment after death in many religious traditions. European folklore imagined Hekla as an entrance to hell.
Iceland plume: A mantle plume beneath Iceland that supplies unusually hot material to the island’s volcanic system. The plume adds heat and magma to the tectonic setting around Hekla.
Hekla 1970 eruption: An eruption of Hekla that began in May 1970 and produced lava and ash. This eruption illustrates the volcano’s capacity for renewed activity after decades of quiet.