The most famous - or infamous - of all is Eyjafjallajökull, its spreading ash cloud grounding flights across Europe. In recent years, there has been thrilling volcanic activity in Iceland that has captured the world’s imagination. More than 30 volcanoes are considered active or dormant in Iceland, and 18 of them have erupted since the year 900. Extinct volcanoes are not expected to erupt again.

Dormant volcanoes have not erupted for a long time but could possibly reawaken at a future date. Active volcanoes have a recent history of eruptions and could easily erupt again. In geological terms, volcanoes are classified as active, dormant, or extinct. How many active volcanoes are in Iceland? There are around 130 volcanoes on the island, the vast majority of them dormant or extinct. At the boundary, plumes of extremely hot rock push up through the Earth’s mantle, erupting molten magma, building Iceland and bringing about the active volcanoes Iceland is famous for. Iceland came into existence when the North American and Eurasian plates spread apart, starting around 30 million years ago. Take one of the volcano tours of Iceland and be prepared to be awed. The landscapes are majestic and bleakly beautiful. Even as these volcanoes lie dormant, a trip to south Iceland should not be missed. Currently, the volcanoes that lie in this area are not active, although Katla could erupt any day soon. Their impact has been felt in mainland Europe and beyond as the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption famously demonstrated. In contrast, the volcanoes sitting under the ice caps of southern Iceland are much more explosive as fire and water don’t mix! These Icelandic volcanoes have created havoc over the centuries.

While fearsome and beautiful to behold, spewing rivers of molten lava, Fagradalsfjall holds relatively little danger to cautious visitors and the local population. Once again, our attention has turned to the peninsula, where the ‘tourist eruptions’ are easily accessed. As Fagradalsfjall’s original volcanic activity died away, new fissures opened up in the area in August 2022. Just a short drive from the centre of Reykjavik and the international airport, the eruption at Fagradalsfjall in 2021 caused a rumpus around the world. It’s all kicking off again! There’s a great deal of excitement surrounding the renewed volcanic activity on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula.

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