The Island

Surtsey is a volcanic island thirty-three kilometres south of the coast of Iceland (precisely, at 63.4N, 20.3W) and is part of the Westman Islands (Vestmannaeyjar, in the Icelandic tongue). It is made up of several separate cones; one is composite, the other a shield volcano, and is at present about 2.6 square kilometres in area and 150 metres in height. However, only approximately 10% of the ash and lava out of which the island is formed is above sea level; the rest is below the waves, produced when Surtsey was still submarine.

A photograph of the island.

The volcanoes are currently thought to be extinct, and there has been no activity since 1967. The island is now a nature reserve, and travel to it is only allowed for scientific reasons, with special permission.

A map, showing the volcanic craters and the lava which came from them, and makes up the bulk of the island.