Scientists to drill holes in Surtsey

Professor Magnús Tumi Guðmundsson.

Professor Magnús Tumi Guðmundsson. Photo/University of Iceland

The biggest research project on the volcanic island of Surtsey since its creation, between 1963 and 1967, will begin this August.

Scientists will be drilling holes in the island and gathering samples and data that will then be used for multiple different projects. Magnús Tumi Guðmundsson, Professor of Geophysics at the University of Iceland, is at the helm of the project along with Associate Professor Marie Jackson of the University of Utah and a group of international scientists.

The project title is SUSTAIN and Magnús says it’s goal is to bring together many different fields of studies to show how a volcanic island is formed,

“The Surstey-eruption from 1963 to 1967 is among the most famous geological events in the world in the second part of the 20th century. The eruption showed how land is built during an eruption in the ocean and also brought into light the nature of volcanic activity where water and magma collide,” Magnús says.

Magnús says the island has a special place in science since man has been able to track its evolution from the beginning. Birds, insects and seals have found their homes on Surtsey and strange organisms have settled down in the rocks that form the island. Geothermal heat has changed the loose tephra into tuff that can better withstand the surrounding ocean.

“The plan is to take two drill cores, a 200-meter vertical core and a core from a 300-meter angled hole. The inner build and evolution of geothermal heat on the island will be researched as an example of a short-lived geothermal system in a rift zone of a oceanic crust,” Magnús says. He says microorganisms and their role on the island will also be researched and that the vertical drill hole will be used for decades to come for further investigations.

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