Wonders of Iceland - Week 1 - Let's Talk

[Prof. Tarma Amelia Black]

As far as I know, Monty Python didn't celebrate Iceland in any song, sketch or story, quite unlike Australia or Finland. How strange!        ^[1]

 

Our first chat about Iceland, therefore, is .... about Iceland!

 

1 - First off, where IS it?

 

2 - Secondly, why does it have the descriptive of The Land of Fire and Ice?

 

If you use images in your post, please keep the size of the graphics to 600x600 or less (each).

 

Earn 25 Diamonds when you reply in here. Have at least 150 words to earn the Diamonds.  You get to come up with your very own 'how to find it' and also why it's got that descriptive. (IE - do not repeat what others wrote! This is your turn to shine. Make them as funny and/or straight-forward factual as you wish.  )

 

To earn full Diamonds, address both questions in your reply -- both the description of where to find Iceland and also, why you think it has that sobriquet.

 

You have until the end of March to earn your Diamonds.  

 

 

^{[1] I'm wrong!  There was a Monty Python sketch ....}

"Icelandic Saga is a sketch that appears in "Whicker's World," the twenty-seventh episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus."

[Anne-Marie Gagne]

1) Iceland is located in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The island is the meeting place of two tectonic plates, the Eurasian and the American plates. The country closest to it is Greenland which is around 200 miles away and the next closest country is Scotland at around 500 miles away.

 

2) Iceland is known as the Land of Ice and Fire because of the geothermic activity caused by the tectonic plates as well as having quite a few glaciers as well as over 125 volcanic mountains. The cooled lava and the ice from the glaciers makes up about a tenth of the land area of Iceland. The active volcanoes still add more land to Iceland and the oceans surrounding it with the massive amount of lava that the volcanoes that are part of the island and the underwater volcanoes nearby. The hot springs and the geysers also are a part of why Iceland gets this moniker.

[Harry Walles]

1. The first settlers were Irish religious people who wanted to live a simple life. The country was prosperous in the Middle Ages. They established a national assembly, called Althingi, in 930. Althingi is the world's oldest continuous parliament. Iceland was part of Norway and then was ruled by Denmark for more than 500 years, but the country became an independent republic in 1944.

 

2. A volcanic island, Iceland experiences severe volcanic activity. In 2010, the Eyjafjallajokull volcano at an elevation of 5,466 feet (1,666 meters) erupted, blowing ash high into the atmosphere and disrupting European air traffic for weeks.The land is plateau with mountain peaks, and ice fields, with a coastline marked by fjords, which are deep inlets carved by glaciers. The colors in the flag represent three of the elements that make up the island: Red is for the island's volcanic fires; white for the snow and ice fields of the island; and blue is for the surrounding ocean.

[Louis Walles]

1.  Iceland is the second largest island in Europe, following Great Britain, and the 18th largest island in the world. The coastline is 4,970 km, and Iceland maintains a 200 nautical-miles exclusive economic zone. It takes approximately five hours to fly from New York to Reykjavík, and three hours from London. Iceland’s highest peak is Hvannadalshnjúkur, standing 2.119 metres (6852 ft) over sea level. and over 11 percent of the country is covered by glaciers, including Vatnajökull, the largest in Europe. Its land mass comprises glaciers (12,000 km2), lava (11,000 km2), sand (4,000 km2), water (3,000 km2) and pasture (1,000 km2).

 

2. Over 90% of Icelandic housing is heated by geothermal energy thanks to volcanic activity beneath Iceland’s surface.While eruptions can cause mass mayhem and disaster, it’s not difficult to imagine why people in the past have chosen not to leave Iceland’s shores. Geothermal power provides a cheap and incredibly clean way to produce energy, making Iceland a very sustainable country.

[Prof. Felicia Hartwick]

1 - Iceland is located in the North Atlantic Ocean, (64.9631 degrees N, 19.0208 degrees W), just south of the arctic Ocean. Its closest neighbor to the northwest is Greenland and to the east, Europe. It has an area of 39.997 sq. miles, basically the size of Portugal and Hungary or Kentucky and Virginia. It is the second largest island of Europe, Great Britain being the largest.

 

2 - Iceland is called the Land of Fire and Ice, and it's just the description for it.  The FIRE aspect is from the many volcanoes, yes, that's right volcanoes! One would not expect that from a country names ICEland. There are 32 active volcanoes on this island. There is a volcanic eruption roughly every four years. 85% of homes and buildings are heated by the natural geothermal heat from the hot springs. The ICE aspect come from the glaciers that believe it or not are created from the volcanoes. The volcanism builds mountains that reach up to the colder levels in the atmosphere which then absorbs moisture from the air, feeding the glories on top. 

[Amy Darvill]

1. Iceland is located at least 846 miles (1,362 kilometers) northeast of the British Isles. So a direct flight from London to Iceland is roughly 3 hours and 15 minutes, and that's without transfers. But if you want a more scenic approach, you could come by ferry from Denmark, which is a country a bit more west of England. The usual ferry route takes a few days, but allows you to A. Feel like a Viking returning home, and B. Allows you to see the Faroe Islands, which is a small island country famous for a selkie statue. 

 

2. Iceland, ironically, is not that icy. (Especially fun fact, nearby Greenland is an icy paradise.) Iceland is actually considered a fairly temperate place. But when some of the first Norseman were settling there, it was snowing on the day they landed. So Naddador named it Snæland (Snowland). And there is quite a bit of Ice, so thus why it's a land of ice. On the flip side, the whole island is built off of the Iceland Plateau, which is literally formed out of all the volcanic activity. So thus..the fire aspect.