How do the people of Iceland use volcanoes to their benefit?

Answer 1

They don't use volcanoes, per se (a volcano simply erupts in a violent and sporadic fashion and can't be harnessed for long-term power) but rather geothermal energy drawn from underground naturally-heated water and gasses. They have pipes running directly into homes and businesses for heating (over 85% of home are heated naturally), and also use the natural steam to power small (and large) generators. Iceland also uses hydroelectric power from dams set up along its many rivers and waterways.

Answer 2

Some people would suggest that the reduction in air travel due to the flight ban in Europe caused by the eruption may be good for the environment (others may point out that the huge volumes of gas emitted by a volcano mean that this makes no difference).

Another potential advantage is that it improves our understanding of Icelandic volcanism as geologists, geophysicists and volcanologists will be able to study the eruption and learn more about the interior of the Earth.

Atmospheric scientists have been studying the ash cloud and where it travels as this provides them with very useful information about how the atmosphere behaves at different levels (as they can directly observe changes in the direction and speed of the wind at different heights in the atmosphere over Europe by the way the ash cloud moves).

Answer 3

The volcanic eruption in 2011 was not large by Icelandic standards and didn't affect most Icelanders seriously. The people who had to go through the biggest struggles were farmers, who had to make sure all their animals would be safe. Icelandic farmers let their sheep, horses and usually cows be free in nature during the summer. The farms in southeast Iceland were most seriously affected.

Iceland has learned to cope with volcanic eruptions because it has one of the highest concentrations of active volcanoes on Earth. This is a consequence of its location on the Atlantic ridge that is the boundary of two of Earth's major tectonic plates. Iceland has 13 volcanic systems that have shown activity since it was settled in AD 874.

The most recent volcanic eruptions in Iceland were Eyjafjallajokull in 2010 and Grimsvotn in 2011. These were significant eruptions, but not large by the scale of Iceland's past eruptions.

The eruption under Eyjafjallajökull ("glacier of Eyjafjöll") in 2010 made international news because the volcanic ash plume disrupted air travel in a large area of across western and northern Europe in April 2010.

The eruption in May 2011 at Grímsvötn under the Vatnajökull glacier sent thousands of tones of ash into the sky in a few days. It was accompanied by small earthquakes and melting of the glacier, but the melting did not produce dangerous flooding as it had in past eruptions. The eruption produced a much greater volume of ash than the 2010 eruption but the ash was heavier and did not rise as high or travel as far as and caused much less disruption of air flights.

Since late 2011 and into 2012 there were signs of activity at the much larger neighboring Katla caldera in Iceland. In the past, eruptions of this volcano have been preceded by its neighbor Eyjafjallajokull. Katla has produced some of the largest volcanic eruptions on Earth in the last thousand years.

Answer 4

The people of Iceland use geothermal energy from volcanoes for heating homes, generating electricity, and powering greenhouses. They also use volcanic ash and minerals to improve soil fertility for agriculture. Additionally, Iceland's geothermal hot springs are popular for bathing and relaxation.

Answer 5

yes they do, the ash serves a good purpose for you plants and crops the ash helps your plants grow and keeps them healthy

Answer 6

some times people use volcanoes to kill other people.

Answer 7

This is an impossible question to answer. There is a great number of volcanoes in Iceland. The most famous one is Mount Hekla. It has irrupted more then once though.