See Iceland’s Volcano Raging Under the Northern Lights In 1 Amazing Image
See Iceland’s Volcano Raging Under the Northern Lights In 1 Amazing Image
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The Bardarbunga volcano erupts under the aurora borealis in the Holuhraun lava field in the east highlands of Iceland near Snæfell on Sept. 2, 2014.Gísli Dúa Hjörleifsson
Since the Aug. 31 eruption of Iceland’s Bardarbunga volcano, the world has watched in awe as it spews glowing red lava into the desolate landscape. Bardarbunga has stemmed a series of earthquakes through the country, but the eruption has also become the subject of some incredible photographs, videos, and satellite images.
Icelandic photographer Gísli Dúa Hjörleifsson, who is also a ranger in the area, may have captured the most epic images of all: the hot glow of the volcanic eruption underneath cool and ethereal haze of the northern lights, or the aurora borealis.
The Bardarbunga volcano erupts under the aurora borealis in the Holuhraun lava field in the east highlands of Iceland near Snæfell on Sept. 2, 2014.Gísli Dúa Hjörleifsson
“In my many years of working in the highland of Iceland both as a photographer and ranger, I . . . have a knowledge of the nature and especially the way the light has an huge influence in the landscape,” Hjörleifsson told TIME. “Knowing the current situation of the volcano I wanted to capture this unique situation. I drove up in the area surrounding the volcano and watched the the sky until I could see the northern lights taking shape. That interaction with the heat and color from the volcano created a completely new color palette I have never seen [before].”
Look at These Incredible Close-Ups of a Volcanic Eruption in Iceland
Glowing lava flows from an eruption at the Holuhraun lava field near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.comLava bursts up to some 328 feet (100 meters) in the air near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.comHeat from the lava distorts the view of the fountains in the distance near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.comA late afternoon view of part of the fissure erupting as fumes and steam rise into the air near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.comA fountain splashes up over a layer of cooled black lava in the foreground near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.comThe lava-producing fissure eruption began on Aug. 31, but part of it was already extinct the next day. Bardarbunga, Sept. 1.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-images.comMuch of the eruption plume is water vapor. Bardarbunga, Sept. 1.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-images.comA pulled-back view of the lava flow and massive plumb of water vapor. Bardarbunga, Sept. 1.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-images.comIndividual craters, made of lava spatter and scoria around each vent, line the active fissure. Bardarbunga, Sept. 1.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-images.comA close-up view of the lava flow and massive plumb of water vapor. Bardarbunga, Sept. 1, 2014.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-images.comHeavy activity in the northern half of the fissure sent a white plumb some 15,000 feet into the sky and pushed lava across the cold sand below. Bardarbunga, Sept. 1.Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-images.com