View allAll Photos Tagged tectonics
This place in Iceland called Þingvellir is on the plate boundary of the tectonic plates of America and Europe. Both plates drifting apart leaving behind cracks in the surface which are sometimes filled by water. A really must see place if visiting Iceland. Thus it´s unfortunately quite crowded during daytime. Best is to stay at the campingsite.
Iceland.
July 2013.
In the wake of the Indonesian tsunami, this graphic shows the "Ring of Fire," the hot zone of where continental plates are actively moving against each other (background map provided by Scripps Institution of Oceanography).
Iceland: Mountains, ocean, waterfalls, rainbows, ponies. Repeat.
Öxarárfoss, Iceland. This waterfall is a short hike through a rift valley, a splitting point between the North American and Eurasion tectonic plates in Þingvellir.
This is possibly the wackiest video that I’ve posted, but then again, it is The Wombats.
The text might get a bit tedious so if you’re not feeling it, just watch the video and skip the boring stuff.
A recent study documented in National Geographic tells of how tectonic plate activity is likely to cease in 1.45 billion years as the temperature in the Earth’s mantle progressively cools, well before our sun develops into a Red Giant and engulfs us in 4.5 billion years.
So the origin of Bedruthan Steps, our mountains, oceans, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions will cease and with it the Carbon cycle too. No Carbon Cycle, no life on Earth, unless, unless you’re a tardigrade, also known as a water bear. These critters are pretty hardy and can survive for up to 30 years without food or water and can endure wild temperature extremes, radiation exposure, and even the vacuum of space.
On a more reassuring note a response from the Flat Earth Society to the question:
Do you believe in Climate Change?, replied with:
“Certainly. It would be nothing short of irresponsible to question something with so much overwhelming evidence behind it, and something that threatens us so directly as a species.”
I would just suggest they don’t stand too close to the edge!
M explaining plate tectonics and the relationship between quantum mechanics and the original Pangea.
Standing in the rift between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates on Iceland's Reykjanes peninsula. This is the view toward the easternmost edge of the North American plate.
Öxarárfoss waterfall over the North American Plate Tectonic Plate in Thingvellir National Park - along the Golden Circle - Thingvellir Iceland
Every year the ice forms, folds and crumples in processes that mirror the formation of terrestrial mountains and ridges.
Taken around Pingvellir/Thingvellir National Park in Selfoss, Iceland. It was a breathtaking area with striking volcanic rock. Here the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates pull apart from each other.
Þingvellir National Park in Iceland. The whole area lies on top of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, an enormous fissure which stretches between the Eurasian and the North American continental plates, extending over 16,000 kilometers (9,950 miles).
Þingvellir rift valley in the Þingvellir National Park. It is here where Iceland is situated on two tectonic plates: the Eurasian and the North American plate, which are drifting off in opposite direction thus ripping Iceland apart at this very place. Þingvellir in Iceland and the Great Rift Valley in Eastern Africa are the only two places on Earth where the effect of major tectonic plates drifting apart can be observed.The Þingvellirvatn lake is situated over a "graben" which is surrounded by volcanoes and it is the correlation between rifting and volcanism that makes this landscape such a visually amazing living Earth lab.
Positano, na Costa Amalfitana, sul de Itália, é uma vila com uma configuração peculiar: o casario em tons pastel ergue-se em socalcos pela encosta íngreme até ao Mar Tirreno, adaptando-se ao terreno montanhoso da península de Sorrento. Esta disposição vertical reflete a sua história, outrora um próspero entreposto comercial marítimo e parte da República Marítima de Amalfi. As formações rochosas calcárias, resultado da atividade tectónica e erosão marinha, moldam a paisagem da Campânia, conferindo-lhe uma beleza única. Atualmente, Positano, com a sua arquitetura característica, clima mediterrânico e paisagem ímpar, é um destino turístico de prestígio e beneficia da produção local de limoncello e da pesca. A vila, juntamente com a Costa Amalfitana, é reconhecida como Património Mundial da UNESCO desde 1997, pela sua importância cultural e paisagística.
Positano, on the Amalfi Coast in southern Italy, is a village with a unique layout: pastel-colored houses climb up the steep hillside to the Tyrrhenian Sea, adapting to the mountainous terrain of the Sorrento Peninsula. This vertical layout reflects its history as a once-prosperous maritime trading post and part of the Maritime Republic of Amalfi. The limestone rock formations, the result of tectonic activity and marine erosion, shape the landscape of Campania, giving it a unique beauty. Today, Positano, with its characteristic architecture, Mediterranean climate, and unique landscape, is a prestigious tourist destination and benefits from local limoncello production and fishing. The village, together with the Amalfi Coast, has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997 for its cultural and scenic importance.
Now the fall color season is over. I managed to capture the last days of color last weekend on a trip to the colorful Þingvellir.
This is the classic view of the location over the tectonic rift that splits the national park in half. Behind Þingvellir one can see the lavafields orginating from the large shield volcano on the upper left side of the picture. On a geological timescale all this landscape is very new created in the last 10,000 years. I would love to see how it looks like in another 10.000.
If you are ever interested in visiting Iceland for photographic purposes consider joining us on a Photo Tour
One of the old routes to reach Þingvellir was along the eastern shores of Þingvallavatn (lake). However an earthquake in 1789 caused the land to subside along the lake and the route to be submerged. In 1830 a new route to Þingvellir was started that went down the Almannagjá (gorge). Construction along this route was finally completed in 1907. Þingvellir became Iceland’s first national park in 1928. The road through Almannagjá remained the main public thoroughfare to Þingvellir until the last car was allowed through the canyon on November 1, 1967. At that time, park officials relocated the road to its current position which goes around Almannagjá with side roads to reach locations in Þingvellir. The old road route now serves as a walking path through Almannagjá.
On March 31st , 2011 a 10 meter deep and 15 meter long hole opened up in the gravel path as it approached the top of the gorge. The hole developed due to settling of rocks and debris akong the fault. Some believe the settling may have been due to earthquakes in 2000 and 2008. A bridge built over the fissure allows visitors to look down into the fault. A reminder that the area lies on an active rift which is part of the Mid-Atlantic Oceanic Ridge which makes a rare appearance on land in Iceland.
The entire Þingvellir region lies in a valley created by the drifting apart of the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. The tectonic plates are drifting in opposite directions at the rate of 7 mm (0.276 in) annually. Almannagjá lies along the North American plate on the west side of the valley. It measures 7.7 km long and 64 m wide at its maximum. The gorge’s cliffs lie along a fault with a maximum throw of 30-40 m. Geologists believe the Þingvellir faults (fissures) to be the surface expressions of deeply rooted normal faults. The basalt, seen in the cliffs and fault walls, cooled from lava flows that erupted out of near by fissures about 2,000 years ago.
Reference: Park info sign by the bridge pictured above.
Visitors can be seen walking along the Almannagjá Gorge in Þingvellir National Park in southwest Iceland. The cliff walls towering over them consist of stacks of numerous, successive basalt flows. Each layer in the stack is an individual lava lobe.
The entire Þingvellir region is located in a rift valley created by the drifting apart of the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. The tectonic plates are drifting in opposite directions at the rate of 7 mm (0.276 in) annually. Almannagjá lies along the North American plate on the west side of the valley. It measures 7.7 km long and 64 m wide at its maximum. The gorge’s cliffs lie along a fault with a maximum throw of 30-40 m. Geologists believe the Þingvellir faults (fissures) to be the surface expressions of deeply rooted normal faults. Basalt cooled from lava flows that erupted out of near by fissures about 2,000 years ago. On the right side of the photo, the volcanic mountain, Ármannsfell, is visible on the horizon.
This unique geology became the backdrop for some of Iceland's most important political and cultural events. Iceland’s settlement by The Norse began with the arrival of Ingólfur Arnarson in 874. Historians refer to the next 56 years, as ‘The Settlement Period’. Driven away from a newly united Norway under King Harald Fairhair, settlers from many different clans settled all around the island’s shores. Though the new arrivals shared an ancestral home, religion and language, difference sprang up because each clan had its own leaders and customs. Violence broke out from time to time between these clans both over their beliefs and for the limited resources their new island had to offer. In order to address these issues the people decided to hold a general assembly with members from each clan.
A man called Grímur Geitskör was given the tasks of gathering representatives from each clan and finding a suitable meeting location. As Geitskör was searching for a location, a man who owned a sheltered piece of land accessible from all corners of the country was convicted of murder, and his property turned public. This sheltered place was in the rift valley at Þingvellir. People from all over Iceland could reach the assembly place with no more than seventeen days of traveling. In 930 AD, over thirty ruling chiefs met for the first time at Þingvellir to discuss law on the island and to create a Viking commonwealth. This meeting and all the ones that followed took place with the cliffs of Almannagjá as a back drop.
Þingvellir translated literally means "Assembly Plains”. The Parliament, called The Alþing, met at Þingvellir from 930 to 1798 AD. Many important historic and cultural events occurred here while Parliment was in session which makes it one of the most imporant places in Icelandic History. In 1799 the Alþing stopped meeting due to Danish colonialism. The Alþing started meeting again sporadically in 1848 in Reykjavik. It was 1907 before the Alþing started meeting regularly also in Reykjavik. In 1928, just before the 1000 anniversary of the foundation of Alþingi in 1930, the parliament made Þingvellir a National Park. When Iceland declared it independence from Denmark in 1944, the ceremony was held at Þingvellir. Today, hundreds of thousands visit Þingvellir National Park every year and most of those visitors walk the Almannagjá.
References:
icelandroadguide.com/items/hakid/
guidetoiceland.is/connect-with-locals/jorunnsg/ingvellir-...
notendur.hi.is/oi/geology_of_thingvellir.htm
www.thingvellir.is/en/history-nature/history/
icelandmag.is/article/9-essential-things-know-about-thing...
Þingvellir area is on the tectonic plate boundaries of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the faults and fissures of the area bear evidence to the rifting of the earth's crust. Nikulásargjá (Nicholas´s fault) is a part of the fault system, filled with crystal clear water up to 25m deep.
Þingvellir (Thingvellir) National Park is where the Althing, an open-air assembly representing the whole of Iceland, was established in 930 and continued to meet until 1798. Over two weeks a year, the assembly set laws - seen as a covenant between free men - and settled disputes. (whc.unesco.org/en/list/1152)
Öxarárfoss is a waterfall in Þingvellir National Park, Iceland. This national park lies in a rift valley that marks the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the boundary between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. You can walk through a crack in the earth here that is slowly opening up.
Stitch of 2 wide angle shots.
More images from my Iceland trip here.
All images are copyrighted by EyeSeeLight Photography - Ron Jansen. If you want to use or buy any of my photographs, contact me. It is not allowed to download them or use them on any websites, blogs etc. etc. without asking me.
Tectonic forces combine with water to sculpt the land . . .
This photo was taken by a Hasselblad 500C medium format film camera with a Carl Zeiss Distagon 1:4 f=50mm lens and Zenza Bronica 67mm SY48•2C(Y2) filter using Adox CHS 50 ART film, the negative scanned by an Epson Perfection V600 and digitally rendered with Photoshop.
Öxarárfoss flowing over the edge of the American tectonic plate in Iceland's Thingvellir National Park. This national park was so incredibly impressive, and the waterfall even more so. It's no wonder that the Icelandic people used this place for the backdrop of some of their most important historical events, including the establishment of the Icelandic Parliament in year 930.
Find me on:
Beautiful Image of "Lowell W" & the edge of the "Oriental Basin"
Impact, Volcanism and Tectonics make for an interesting scene from our nearest neighbor "The Moon"
False colour added & adjustments made in Photoshop CC
NASA / GSFC / Arizona State University / Neal Spence
Explore with full zoom and pan here: viewer.gigamacro.com/view/fVUyVJ47lYEqqjqd?x1=17064.00&am...
Aguereberry Point, Death Valley, California
Death Valley is part of the Basin and Range region of North America extending from eastern California through Nevada to western Utah and characterized by north to south running mountain ranges separated by basins. The earth's crust in that region was stretched, thinned, and uplifted after the North American tectonic plate rode over the now extinct Farallon tectonic plate. The result was huge cracks (aka faults) where massive blocks of the crust tilted up into mountain ranges, leaving basins in the intervening low spots.
Here at Aguereberry Point we are on top of one such huge block (the Panamint Mountains) and the sedimentary layers are so very clearly tilted from their original horizontal bedding. Even the outcropping in the foreground shows the tilt. In the distance is Badwater Basin on the floor of Death Valley with the Black Mountains further on.
[Reprocessed November 27, 2019]
Visitors walk down in Almannagjá Gorge in Þingvellir National Park in southwest Iceland. The entire Þingvellir region is located in a rift valley created by the drifting apart of the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. The tectonic plates are drifting in opposite direction at the rate of 7 mm (0.276 in) annually. Almannagjá lies along the North American plate on the west side of the valley. It measures 7.7 km long and 64 m wide at its maximum. The gorge’s cliffs lie along a fault with a maximum throw of 30-40 m. Geologists believe the Þingvellir faults (fissures) to be the surface expressions of deeply rooted normal faults. Basalt from cooled lava flows make up the cliffs and valley floor. At the top of the photo, the base of Ármannsfell, a volcanic mountain, dominates the horizon.
This unique geology became the backdrop for important political and cultural events. Iceland’s settlement by The Norse began with the arrival of Ingólfur Arnarson in 874. Historians refer to the next 56 years, as ‘The Settlement Period’. Driven away from a newly united Norway under King Harald Fairhair, settlers from many different clans settled all around the island’s shores. Though the new arrivals shared an ancestral home, religion and language, difference sprang up because each clan had its own leaders and customs. Violence broke out from time to time between these clans both over their beliefs and for the limited resources their new island had to offer. In order to address these issues the people decided to hold a general assembly with members from each clan.
A man called Grímur Geitskör was given the tasks of gathering representatives from each clan and finding a suitable meeting location. As Geitskör was searching for a location, a man who owned a sheltered piece of land accessible from all corners of the country was convicted of murder, and his property turned public. This sheltered place was in the rift valley at Þingvellir. People from all over Iceland could reach the assembly place with no more than seventeen days of traveling. In 930 AD, over thirty ruling chiefs met for the first time at Þingvellir to discuss law on the island and to create a Viking commonwealth. Their meeting place was within the Almannagjá Gorge.
Þingvellir translated literally means "Assembly Plains”. The Parliament, called The Alþing, met at Þingvellir from 930 to 1789 AD. Many important historic and cultural events occurred here while Parliment was in session which makes it one of the most imporant places in Icelandic History. In 1799 the Alþing stopped meeting due to Danish colonialism. The Alþing started meeting again sporadically in 1848 in Reykjavik. It was 1907 before the Alþing started meeting regularly also in Reykjavik. In 1928, just before the 1000 anniversary of the foundation of Alþingi in 1930, the parliament made Þingvellir a National Park. When Iceland declared it independence from Denmark in 1944, the ceremony was held at Þingvellir. Hundreds of thousands visit Þingvellir National Park every year and most of those visitors walk the Almannagjá.
One of the old routes to reach Þingvellir was along the eastern shores of Þingvallavatn (lake). However an earthquake in 1789 caused the land to subside along the lake and the route to be submerged. In 1830 a new route to Þingvellir was started that went down the Almannagjá (gorge). Construction along this route was finally completed in 1907. Þingvellir became Iceland’s first national park in 1928. The road through Almannagjá remained the main public thoroughfare to Þingvellir until the last car was allowed through the canyon on November 1, 1967. At that time, park officials relocated the road to its current position which goes around Almannagjá with side roads to reach locations in Þingvellir. The old road route now serves as a walking path through Almannagjá.
References:
icelandroadguide.com/items/hakid/
guidetoiceland.is/connect-with-locals/jorunnsg/ingvellir-...
notendur.hi.is/oi/geology_of_thingvellir.htm
www.thingvellir.is/en/history-nature/history/
icelandmag.is/article/9-essential-things-know-about-thing...
Info signs in The National Park along the Path
When tectonic plates smash into each other, they push the Earth’s crust higher and higher, forming mountains. Some mountain ranges, like the Himalayas, are still growing. Others, like the Appalachians, saw their heyday hundreds of millions of years ago and have been weathering away ever since. Volcanoes also form mountains and periodically erupt – scraping clear the landscape.
On a mountain, weather and the organisms that live there rapidly change as elevation increases. As temperatures get colder, tree species change, and then become scarcer before disappearing entirely. At the top there may be nothing but snow and ice. But even these bleak landscapes are home to a diverse array of plants and animals adapted for that environment.
Until recently, mountain habitats have been largely protected because of their inaccessibility. As people have moved into the mountains to live, for recreation and to obtain valuable resources such as timber, mountain ecosystems around the world have been subject to degradation and destruction.
The only place in the world where the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates are visible above ground
A gap in the clff wall is visible along the trail to Öxarárfoss in Almannagjá Gorge, Þingvellir National Park, Iceland. The entire Þingvellir region is located in a rift valley created by the drifting apart of the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. The tectonic plates are drifting in opposite direction at the rate of 7 mm (0.276 in) annually. Almannagjá lies along the North American plate on the west side of the valley. It measures 7.7 km long and 64 m wide at its maximum. The gorge’s cliffs lie along a fault with a maximum throw of 30-40 m. Geologists believe the Þingvellir faults (fissures) to be the surface expressions of deeply rooted normal faults. Basalt from cooled lava flows make up the cliffs and valley floor. At the top of the photo, the base of Ármannsfell, a volcanic mountain, dominates the horizon.
This unique geology became the backdrop for important political and cultural events. Iceland’s settlement by The Norse began with the arrival of Ingólfur Arnarson in 874. Historians refer to the next 56 years, as ‘The Settlement Period’. Driven away from a newly united Norway under King Harald Fairhair, settlers from many different clans settled all around the island’s shores. Though the new arrivals shared an ancestral home, religion and language, difference sprang up because each clan had its own leaders and customs. Violence broke out from time to time between these clans both over their beliefs and for the limited resources their new island had to offer. In order to address these issues the people decided to hold a general assembly with members from each clan.
A man called Grímur Geitskör was given the tasks of gathering representatives from each clan and finding a suitable meeting location. As Geitskör was searching for a location, a man who owned a sheltered piece of land accessible from all corners of the country was convicted of murder, and his property turned public. This sheltered place was in the rift valley at Þingvellir. People from all over Iceland could reach the assembly place with no more than seventeen days of traveling. In 930 AD, over thirty ruling chiefs met for the first time at Þingvellir to discuss law on the island and to create a Viking commonwealth. Their meeting place was within the Almannagjá Gorge.
Þingvellir translated literally means "Assembly Plains”. The Parliament, called The Alþing, met at Þingvellir from 930 to 1789 AD. Many important historic and cultural events occurred here while Parliment was in session which makes it one of the most imporant places in Icelandic History. In 1799 the Alþing stopped meeting due to Danish colonialism. The Alþing started meeting again sporadically in 1848 in Reykjavik. It was 1907 before the Alþing started meeting regularly also in Reykjavik. In 1928, just before the 1000 anniversary of the foundation of Alþingi in 1930, the parliament made Þingvellir a National Park. When Iceland declared it independence from Denmark in 1944, the ceremony was held at Þingvellir. Hundreds of thousands visit Þingvellir National Park every year and most of those visitors walk the Almannagjá.
References:
icelandroadguide.com/items/hakid/
guidetoiceland.is/connect-with-locals/jorunnsg/ingvellir-...
notendur.hi.is/oi/geology_of_thingvellir.htm
www.thingvellir.is/en/history-nature/history/
icelandmag.is/article/9-essential-things-know-about-thing...
The rock walls on the two sides of this path are from the European (left) and North American (right) tectonic plates, which Iceland straddles. They are spreading apart slowly. The path is a popular tourist attraction in the Thingvellir National Park, near Reykjavik.
Empadadas Lagoon - São Miguel Island - Azores.
“The western part of São Miguel Island is dominated by excellent hiking trails. This route is an opportunity to get to know a fascinating area, with the beautiful lakes of Égua, Rasa, and Empadadas, as well as the fantastic Pico do Paul viewpoint, which offers a unique view of the Azores. The starting point is the parking lot along the road. Plan your starting time in advance, as the parking lot may be full” (in www.alltrails.com).
“The Empadadas lakes take the shape of a figure eight, as they occupy two coalescing explosion craters that belong to a basaltic scoria cone whose formation was conditioned by the active tectonics in the region.
This cone, like several others in the Serra Devassa area, resulted from basaltic eruptions that were moderately explosive, of the Strombolian type, conditioned by a general NW-SE tectonics orientation.
About sea level, both lakes are situated at an elevation of approximately 740 meters. The northern lake, with a length of 250 meters and a width of 80 meters, and the southern lake, measuring 85 meters in length and 80 meters in width, have a depth of roughly 9 meters. These unique features are the result of the area’s volcanic activity, which has shaped the surrounding terrain into a natural wonder worth exploring” (in www.futurismo.pt).
Þingvellir (Thingvellir) is a historic site and national park in Iceland, east of Reykjavík. It's known for the Alþing (Althing), the site of Iceland's parliament from the 10th to 18th centuries
At Þingvellir - literally "Parliament Plains" - the Alþing general assembly was established around 930 and continued to convene there until 1798. Major events in the history of Iceland have taken place at Þingvellir and therefore the place is held in high esteem by all Icelanders. Today Þingvellir is a protected national shrine. According to the law, passed in 1928, the protected area shall always be the property of the Icelandic nation, under the preservation of the Alþing. Þingvellir is notable for its unusual tectonic and volcanic environment in a rift valley.
The American tectonic plate stops at a cliff in Iceland - off to the right, the sinking rift valley between it and the Eurasian tectonic plate. Iceland sits on the mid Atlantic ridge - it's a product of it, as the plates split apart and volcanic activity ensues. Standing here, suddenly one is tiny and insignificant, and it dawns on one just how massive the forces of our planet are. Even in the rain.
Mobil Oil Canadian Tectonic Seminar.
The scale of the fabulous compressional tectonic features of the Front Ranges of the Rocky Mountains are definitely best appreciated from the air and the participants in our Mobil field seminar were privileged to have an overflight of the Rockies on the last day of the course.
I was living in The Hague, the Netherlands, at this time and working on the sub-surface Alpine tectonics in the North Sea. Superficially the Geology of Holland is pretty boring but 1000m below the surface in the Dutch offshore all hell breaks loose and, believe it or not, it looks just like this! It could be a seismic cross-section through the Lower Cretaceous oil fields in Offshore Block Q1. The subsurface oil and gas fields in the Foothills west of Calgary are trapped in analogous thrust anticlines.
This labyrinth-like system of troughs and plateaus was imaged by ESA’s Mars Express on 21 June 2016.
It shows part of a region known as Adamas Labyrinthus, which is found in Utopia Planitia in the northern lowlands of Mars. Here, the randomly shaped blocks vary in size from 5–20 km across and are separated by cross-cutting troughs with widths of up to 2 km.
The pattern is similar to that observed in some offshore locations on Earth, supporting an idea that the scene here results from the deposition of fine-grained sediments in an ocean.
The formation of such polygons with surrounding troughs has been attributed to a number of varied processes, including collapse under gravity, the expulsion of fluid from the porous sediments as they are being compacted, low friction between the sediments resulting in mass wasting, and local tectonic activity extending the blocks apart. The underlying topography of the surface below may also play a role.
One idea for the scene shown here on Mars is that sediment slurries were deposited during catastrophic flooding on an ice-rich surface, and contracted into the polygons as the sediments were compacted and expelled their fluids.
Later, tectonic activity and the gradual sublimation of buried ices could have caused gradual widening and deepening of the troughs between the giant polygons.
Icy material certainly played a role in this region’s appearance at some point: the larger impact craters show characteristic “pancake” debris blankets, which indicate heating and melting of a subsurface ice layer at the time of the impact.
In addition, some of the troughs show dark deposits, which may be ash layers being revealed from below a cover of dust-covered ice as Sun-facing slopes are gently heated.
The ground resolution of this image is about 15 m per pixel and the images are centered at 39ºN / 101ºE. For more images and details of this region, see the associated image release by the DLR German Aerospace Agency and by Freie Universität Berlin on 8 September.
Credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO