Overview
About Snaefellsjokull
A volcano beneath the ice
The mountain accumulated through repeated eruptions over roughly 800,000 years. Its summit crater is about 200 metres deep and contains ice. The most recent major eruption occurred approximately 1,800 years ago: pale ash spread across northern Snæfellsnes and reached the Westfjords, while lava descended the southern slopes to form Háahraun. Interwoven lava streams remain visible on the flanks. Although a long interval has passed since that eruption, the mountain is classed as an active volcano.
A mountain in scientific adventure
Jules Verne made the volcano the entrance to an imagined subterranean world in Journey to the Centre of the Earth, first published in 1864. His characters follow a coded message attributed to an Icelandic alchemist and descend with their guide Hans. This fictional geography helped give the mountain an international literary identity alongside its actual geological significance.
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