A map of Iceland
Iceland is an island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, between the North Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean. It has a population of about 325,000 and an area of 103,000 km2 which makes it the most sparsely populated country in Europe. It was also the last settled European country. It was discovered by Scandinavian sailors and the 1st inhabitants were the Irish monks at the beginning of 9th century. The official language of Iceland is Icelandic which hasn't changed much for the past 1000 years. Islandic main industry is fishing and their national sport is handball. Icelanders love reading and hold the world record for number of books per a person. Islandic flag is blue (for the ocean), red (for the volcanoes) and white (for ice and snow).
Reykjavik
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is also the world's northernmost capital of a country. It is located in south-western Iceland, and about 60 % of all Islanders live in the Reykjavík area. The town was first settled around AD 870 and in 1786 it became a trading town. It is among the cleanest, greenest, and safest cities in the world. There are lots of things you can do there - from relaxation to adventure: visiting spas, music events, museums, and as a starting point for descending into a dead volcano or trekking over lava fields or glaciers. Tourists love – or hate the local food, which hasn’t changed much since the Viking age: sheep head, puffin, potatoes and a lot of seafood.
The erupting Great Geyser
The word geyser comes from old Norse and it means 'to gush', to flow suddenly in great volume. Geysers are natural attractions and the result of the heating of underground waters that are very close to or have come into contact with magma. One of the biggest geysers in the world is Geyser, also known as The Great Geyser. It is in the south-west of Iceland and has been active for about 10,000 years. In 1845, it reached a height of 170 m. It still erupts 2-3 times a day and reaches the high of about 122 m. The highest known geyser in history is Waimangu Geyser in New Zealand which was 460 m high.
The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull
In 2010, the eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland caused enormous confusion to air travel across western and northern Europe. The eruption itself was not a huge one. Some ash fell on uninhabited areas in Iceland, but the winds spread it over large areas of northern Europe. About 20 countries closed their airspace because volcanic ash is very dangerous for airplanes. Volcanic smoke and ash small down visibility. Sand in the ash can cover the airplane windows and then melt in the heat of airplane engines. The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull affected about 10 million travellers and even influenced the economy and cultural events across Europe.
Eyjafjallajökull glacier
A glacier is a large amount of packed ice and snow and is constantly moving because of its own weight. Glaciers cover around 10% of the Earth's land surface and they store about 75% of the Earth's whole freshwater supply. During the summer, glaciers melt, and create a water source that is especially important for plants, animals and people. Scientists learn a lot by observing glaciers: glacial changes in size not only indicate climate changes but they also influence the sea level – the more glaciers melt, the more sea level rises. There are glaciers on all continents except Australia. Alaska is estimated to have more than 100,000 glaciers. The largest glacier in the world is the Lambert-Fisher Glacier in Antarctica. It is 400 kilometres long and up to 100 kilometres wide.
Islandic Horse
The Islandic horses developed from ponies that Scandinavian settlers brought to Iceland in the 9th and 10th centuries. They weigh between 330 and 380 kilograms and are only 132 to 142 cm high. Their legs are short and strong, and their mane is long and full. There are about 42 different colour combinations of their coats. Because of the low temperatures in their natural inhabitant, the breed has a double coat. Islandic horses are very popular. There are about 80,000 Icelandic horses in Iceland only (compared to a human population of about 325,000). In the past, they brought them to Britain as working horses – they worked in coal mines.
