Náttúrufræðingurinn - 1985, Qupperneq 35

SUMMARY
The volcano at Leiöólfsfell
by
Jón Jónsson
National Energy Authority
Reykjavík
Iceland
During the summer 1983 a previously
unknown eruptive fissure and lavaflow
were found at the Leiðólfsfell mountain
South Iceland (fig. 2). In a nearby soilsec-
tion, and 1.2 m under the surface, a thick
layer of tephra from this eruption was
found (figs. 3, 4 and 5). The position of
this layer to other tephra layers of known
age indicate that the eruption must be
from historical time, probably from
around 1100 A.D. The lava is of tholeitic
composition and quite similar to the Skaft-
ár (Laki) lava of 1783. Several craters (fig.
7) and kipukas (fig. 6) of this older lava are
surrounded by the Skaftár lava of 1783, to
the west of Leiðólfsfell. Remains of vega-
tion (moss), wich were covered by volcanic
ejecta from this eruption, have been col-
lected and will eventually be dated by the
C14 dating method.
81