Reykjavík Grapevine - 10.11.2017, Blaðsíða 6

ASK A
Scientist
Q: Will The Aurora
Fade In 2019?
Want to ride a roller
coaster in Iceland?
Sorry, it’s not going
to happen. If you’re
looking for an
exhilarating
experience
that makes
you dizzy to
the point
of puking
and leaves
your body
feeling like jell-o,
you’ll just have to
binge drink on a
night out at the
bars downtown.
Iceland is one of
those destinations
where people come
to take in the art
and culture of the
country, rather than
to do things like
ride roller coasters,
where you panic
just before the drop
hundreds of metres
above the ground.
However, there are
many great parks
around the country,
which have more
than enough space
for an amusement
park.
In 2013, a
company called
Zalibuna announced
a plan to design
and build a one-
person bobsled
roller coaster in the
most traveled area
of south Iceland,
Kambarnir. It was a
project coordinated
by four engineering
students from
the University of
Iceland and was
first launched at
Startup Reykjavík,
with the goal to be
fully functioning
by spring 2015,
depending on
funding and
licenses. So far the
idea is still under
construction, but
it’s the first step
to getting the first
activity of its kind in
Iceland. If all goes
well, the ride will be
suitable for anyone
who isn’t afraid of
heights, and that
includes children.
Roller coasters
would be a great
way to enjoy the
beautiful landscape
that Iceland offers.
For now there may
not be any roller
coasters here, but
there isn’t anything
stopping you from
creating your
own. Get a small
toboggan, find a
glacier, and away
you go! JM

Last week, lightning struck twice in
Iceland during a severe gale storm. On
both occasions, it struck a major power
line, cutting off power to large swaths of
people—first, in Reykjanes, and then in
a portion of South Iceland and the West-
man Islands. Lightning is supposed to
be an extremely rare
occurrence in Ice-
land, as it requires a
collision between cold
and warm air fronts.
However, it has been
gradually increasing
on these shores, and
we may need to pre-
pare for it better.
Losing power in a storm is usually
caused by high winds. Lightning, not
so much. When people from the power
company were interviewed by reporters
in the wake of the storm, they said these
cables did have safeguards against light-
ning, but that the voltage level was so
high that the lightning strikes damaged
them badly.
A change in the weather
The fact is, our safeguards against light-
ning may have fallen short. When a sin-
gle cable provides power to an entire
region of the country,
and when that cable is
suspended on a tower
instead of buried in
the ground, you’re
pretty much asking
for trouble.
In fairness, lightning
is not something we
normally have to contend with, but this
has changed in recent years. Tempera-
tures have been warming, rainfalls have
gotten heavier, and lightning has become
more frequent. It doesn’t really matter
how “green” Iceland is if larger countries
cause climate change that can have ef-
fects on our immediate environment.
Stay grounded
Until such time as the global community
solves the problem of global warming
(ha!), we’re going to have to take preven-
tative measures against the impacts of
climate change. This will mean fortifying
our shore lines against rising sea levels,
strengthening the infrastructure against
flooding from melting glaciers, and yes,
overhauling our electric grid against in-
creasing lightning strikes.
On the positive side, lightning is very
pretty, and for many, thunderstorms are
part and parcel with a romantic summer
night. We can enjoy that, too; we just
need to prepare better against the dam-
age lightning invariably causes.
Thun-der!
Do we need to worry about lightning now?
Words:
Paul Fontaine
Photo:
Adobe Stock
First
ArtisAn BAkery
& Coffee House
Open everyday 6.30 - 21.00
Laugavegur 36 · 101 reykjavik
Scene from a real thunderstorm in an actual country
MISSING IN ICELAND
Rollercoasters
“Lightning has been
gradually increas-
ing in Iceland, and
we may need to pre-
pare for it better.”
Words: Charley Ward
A : Everyone who
comes to Iceland
wants to see the
Northern Lights.
During a powerful
display, you can
see huge bursts of
strong green, purple and red lights
weave their way across the night
sky. But if you’ve booked your trip in
2019, you might have heard that you
won’t catch one of the more impres-
sive light shows. Gunnlaugur Björns-
son, a scientist who studies the au-
rora, explains what it is and why this
prediction might not be true.
“ The aurora are caused by
charged particles moving from the
sun, blasting the Earth, exciting at-
oms in the upper atmosphere and
making them shine. A sunspot is a
dark region that appears on the
solar surface. The number of sun-
spots correlates with the number of
charged particles the Earth receives
from the sun, so there is a correla-
tion between aurora activity and the
sun measured in sunspots.
“Every 11 years there’s a maxi-
mum number of sunspots on the
surface of the sun. The sunspots
are expected to be at a minimum
in 2019 or 2020 or so. But, for some
reason, aurora minimums have been
observed to lag two years behind
the solar activity. So, 2021 or 2022
would be my prediction for a low in
aurora activity. Regardless, tourists
shouldn’t worry about this when
booking their next trip to Iceland;
there are always some lights, but
they just might not be those spec-
tacular fireworks that you expect
to see. You tend to get the strong-
est ones during the period two to
three years after solar maximum."
6 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 20 — 2017