Wolfgang's photos with the keyword: Vatnajökull

Vatnajökull is named after sub-glacial lakes in a very volcanically active region in its centre. The sub glacial landscape is an undulating plateau (600-1000m) with valleys and gorges. The icecap rises between 1400 and 1800 m above sea level. The ablation elevation is a bit different, 1100 m in the south, 1200 m in the west and 1300 m in the north. A great number of glacier snouts of different sizes flows down onto the lower lying areas. No glacier in Iceland has been researched more thoroughly than Vatnajökull. Scenes for four Hollywood blockbuster movies (A View to a Kill, Die Another Day, Tomb Raider and the upcoming Batman Begins) and the popular reality-TV series Amazing Race have been shot at and around Jökulsárlón, said to be one of the greatest natural wonders in Iceland.

The largest glacier in Iceland is Vatnajökull and it is the largest glacier mass in Europe. It covers an area of roughly 8100 km 2, and is about 1000m thick where it is thickest. Its average thickness is between 400 and 500m, and the total ice volume of Vatnajokull is probably in the vicinity of 3300 cubic km. The ELA lies at ca. 1100 m a.s.l. along its southern margins, at 1200 m along its western part, and at 1300 m in its northern part. About 60% of the glacier surface is above the ELA. The ice cap covers a highland plateau, generally reaching 600-800 m altitude, but dissected by numerous broad and narrow subglacial valleys. A number of large volcanoes are covered by the great ice cap, including Oraefajokull (Öræfajökull) (2111 m), Bardarbunga (Bárðarbunga) (2020 m) and Grimsvotn.