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Vatnajökull

Vatnajökull (vät'näyö'kool) [key], glacier, c.3,150 sq mi (8,160 sq km), SE Iceland; largest glacier in Europe. At an elevation of from 4,200 to 6,100 ft (1,280–1,860 m), it covers a huge volcanic plateau, which includes the Grím,svötn caldera, Iceland's third largest. It descends in some 40 branches into adjoining valleys. Some peaks rise above the ice, notably Öraefajökull.

See more Encyclopedia articles on: Scandinavian Physical Geography

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Related content from HighBeam Research on: Vatnajökull

Iceland: Vatnajokull Glacier.(Country overview) (Faces: People, Places, and Cultures)

Only In ... Iceland.(Vatnajokull Glacier) (Faces: People, Places, and Cultures)

Fire & ice: in June last year, the Icelandic government created Vatnajokull National Park, the largest national park in Europe, protecting around 12 per cent of Iceland's total area, including Europe's largest glacier. However, the reaction from the country's environmentalists has been considerably less enthusiastic than might have been expected.(travel: ICELAND) (Geographical)

Fire and ice: climatology.(meteorological effect of erupting volcano in Iceland) (The Economist (US))

Joklhlaup. (glacial flood in Iceland) (American Scientist)

The ice above, the fire below: Iceland is still being shaped by the geological interaction of opposites. (Natural History)

Volcanoes under ice: recipe for a flood. (glacial floods called jokulhlaups are more complex than scientists had believed)(Brief Article) (Science News)

Celebrating Geology on Icelandic Stamps. (Faces: People, Places, and Cultures)

Earthly beauty.(The Earth as art) (Geographical)

Myndin af heiminum. (Icelandic).(Brief Article) (World Literature Today)

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