Disparate impacts of the Eldgjá and Laki flood-lava eruptions

Abstract

The Eldgjá eruption of ~ 939 AD is recognised as the largest in Iceland since Settlement, and ranks among the largest late-Holocene volcanic episodes on Earth. It disgorged > 21.0 km3 (Dense Rock Equivalent) of magma as lava flows (~ 19.7 km3) and tephra deposits (> 1.3 km3 DRE), comprising alternating phreatomagmatic (wet) and magmatic (dry) explosive phases. Tephra deposits up to four metres thick buried proximal areas, and extreme quantities of sulphur and other volatiles were released into the atmosphere. Little is known about the environmental and societal impacts of the eruption within Iceland as it took place during the initial decades of human settlement, and before written record-keeping in Iceland became prevalent. In this work, we review what is known of the Eldgjá eruption, making comparisons with the better documented Laki eruption of 1783–1784 AD (~ 15.1 km3 DRE). While the Eldgjá eruption was volumetrically greater, probably longer-lasting, and involved phreatomagmatic explosive phases, we reason that societal resilience to volcanic hazards was likely stronger in the 10th century compared with the 18th, reflecting differences in social and natural capital in Iceland. Accordingly, the impacts of the Eldgjá eruption cannot be inferred reliably from knowledge of the Laki episode and its aftermath.