Eyjaafjallaajokull volcano eruption case study - TECTONICS

Question 1

Location

Answer 1

South of Iceland

Question 2

When did it occur?

Answer 2

April and may 2010.

Question 3

Where did it occur

Answer 3

Mid Atlantic ridge

Question 4

Type of plate boundary

Answer 4

divergent

Question 5

Rating on the Volcano explosivity index

Answer 5

3-4

Question 6

Hazards (3)

Answer 6

• floods, jokulhaup
• ash - 140 million cubic metres of erupted material released in first 27 hours and was very fine so could be transmitted over long distances and most modern planes are prone to this hazard
• lava, 750 tonnes ejected

Question 7

Local Effects (5)

Answer 7

• little impact on Iceland itself
  -impacts lasted 2 weeks
  -livestock taken inside to escape ash
  -local population evacuated
  -local flooding due to melting glacier

Question 8

Regional effects (8)

Answer 8

• 8 day travel ban, 100,000 flights cancelled accounting for 48% of total air traffic and roughly 10 million passengers
• danger to plane - Engine failure
  -people could not travel for business, holidays etc.
  -airlines losing millions of pounds a year
• massive disruption to the industries, business and airlines
  -Europe lost $2.6 billion of GDP due to the eruption
• reduction on noise pollution
• tourism increased -1.7 million visitors in 2016.

Question 9

Global effects (4)

Answer 9

• 2.8 million tonnes less CO2
• did not affect temperatures
• impacted areas like Kenya- lot 3 million a year
• 8 million flowers wasted

Question 10

Prediction (2)

Answer 10

• no prediction but monitored
• 80 seismometers in place

Question 11

What were the short term responses (3)

Answer 11

• ash cloud tracked by satellite
• 700 people evacuate for rural area near the volcano
• airspace closed most of Europe

Question 12

Long term

Answer 12

• infrared sensors experimented on planes to detect ash clouds
  -new guidelines were created on tolerance of aircraft to ash in the atmosphere