Katla Volcano is the beating heart of the Southern Volcanic system in Iceland. It’s located near the town of Vik in Myrdalur. Visit Katla and the area’s incredible volcanic and glacier terrain – prepare to be amazed!
Katla volcano is located in the southern highlands right under one of Mýrdalsjökull’s glacier tongues, this one being called Kötlujökull, named after the mighty Katla. This type of volcano is called a stratovolcano and is the same kind as the famous Eyjafjallajökull that erupted in 2010.
Katla is one of the biggest volcanoes in Iceland and is considered to be very active. From 930 to 1918, when the last one occurred, 16-20 eruptions have been documented. The time between the eruptions has varied from 20 to 80 years but now over 100 years since the last violent eruption.
Some say that the eruption in 1918 might have been the last one but other say it’s overdue. Still, Katla has “blown off steam” a few times with smaller eruptions, so small that they didn’t even break the ice. These smaller eruptions have been documented in the years 1955, 1999 and again in 2011.
Facts about Katla Volcano
- Katla’s name means a kettle, quite fitting as she is, at times, on the edge of boiling
- It is one of the largest volcanic sources of Co2 (carbon-dioxide) on this planet, believed to be responsible for up to 4% of total global volcanic carbon-dioxide emissions
- Kotlujokull glacier has a Natural Ice Cave you can visit all year round!
