"The Inconvenient Truth"
We departed this morning from our new hostel, Grundarfjordur, at around 10:30am. We arrived at the scalding hot waters of the Deildartunguhver springs (approximately 19 meters above sea level), which produces the greatest output of any thermal spring in the world at 180 liters per second. The temperature of this water averages 212 degrees Fahrenheit, and can cause second or third degree burns when it contacts the skin. Massive clouds of steam are observable billowing from the discharging water. We departed from this site, and by around 3:50pm had arrived at a beautiful country church for a brief expedition. This church was established by Snorr Snurluson, who is honored today by a statue in front of the chapel. There was a distinct ellipsis of rock in back of the chapel, likely from an old bath house, as well as a warm pool and a partially-underground "hobbit hole" with a door behind the little circular pool. We eventually departed this locale, bound for an expedition to the core of Langjokull (literally, "long glacier"). By 5:19pm, we had set out on our expedition via a converted NATO missile truck, which now features a large passenger container instead of rocket launchers. We began this journey at an elevation of around 155 meters, traveling through Husafell forest which had once reached from the Icelandic highlands to the coastline. We traveled along a rugged dirt passage until reaching the edge of glacial ice. I noticed that the landscape in this area becomes rockier and the vegetation more sparse with increased elevation. Our guide explained that the vehicle's tire pressure has to be reduced in order to increase traction on this rugged terrain. After driving for a while along bumpy, dirt road, we crossed onto the glacier. The cave into Langojull is man-made, as glaciers cannot form caves naturally. Our guide, who is a third generation glacier explorer, explained how the cave is extended and shortened seasonally based on the melt/thaw cycle, but always falling deeper into the ice as snow buildup compresses the glacier below. The opening to the glacial tunnel is at 1,260 meters above sea level. For comparison, anything above 500 meters is considered Icelandic highland, and on the brink of becoming protected lands. Anyway, our journey into the glacier began at about 6:10pm. Once we had crossed through the initial wood and metal tunnels, we immediately noticed the layers of volcanic ash present in the ice. These layers behave similarly to rings in a tree trunk, allowing scientists to date the glacier based on known volcanic events. As we explored the glacier, we came to a chapel room, in which our guide explained the importance of the glacier to the Icelandic people (glacial melt is the primary source of fresh water in Iceland, and Langokull is the second largest glacier on the island), and the Earth system as a whole (glaciers prevent sea level rise by storing water, and also reflect light due to their white color which increases surface albedo thus cooling the planet). Unfortunately, since the Industrial Revolution in the 1700s, and especially since the onset of the 1900s, increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases have warmed our climate's atmosphere by trapping heat energy. Because of the economic development of many poorer nations, the rate of greenhouse gas emissions has been increasing exponentially over the last twenty years. Our guide also told us about an international team of scientists, which drilled three kilometers into the ice sheet covering Antarctica in 1984, revealing 800,000 years' worth of data on the chemical composition of our atmosphere. These data validate the theory that atmosphere carbon has been increasing at unsustainable rates due to anthropogenic processes (such as the consumption of fossil fuels). While many Icelandic scientists say it is already too late to save their primary source of water from irreparable damage, we must act now to stem the tide of greenhouse gas emissions. Because each subsequent year is the hottest on record and a global mean temperature increase of 2-3 degrees centigrade could have terrible consequences for humanity, 97% of world scientists have accepted the truth of global climate change. "The inconvenient truth," as they have called it, is causing glaciers to melt everywhere, from Iceland to Antarctica. Even Steven Koonin, the chief scientist at BP oil company (the world's second largest supplier of oil), has acknowledged the importance of developing a long term solution to this problem. Glaciers are a source of 3% of the world's fresh water, and loss of surface albedo from glacial retreat posses a positive feedback loop, in which decreased reflectivity leads to higher ocean temperature and thus further glacial loss. Similarly, methane ( a greenhouse gas even more potent than carbon dioxide) is stored in permafrost. Melting permafrost is another positive feedback loop in which temperature increase causes permafrost to melt, releasing more methane, further contributing to greenhouse gas concentrations. Currently, the Icelanders are pumping water out of Langjokull to slow the melting. Lights in the ice cave are also set to shut off to avoid excess heat radiation. The lights shut off with us in the caves multiple times. When this happened, visibility was reduced to nothing in the sheer darkness. Water pockets, bubbles, and puddles were visible throughout the glacier cave and within the ice itself. This sobering reminder of the reality of climate change is something our guide makes a point to mention to all tourists visiting the cave. After reaching a depth of 40 meters into the ice, we made our way back to the exit tunnel. Before we left, the guide mentioned that the tunnel took six years to develop and has been open since only June of 2015. Also, the environmental impact of the glacier tunnel is a minimal .00275% of Langjokull's ice, and should totally collapse in on itself in 20 years. We returned to base camp at 9:05pm, and re-embarked on our golden bus towards the hostel. On the way, we stopped shortly at Hraunfossar Bornafoss (named for two children who died in the falls on Christmas Day) which are formed by spring water flowing through the lava fields of Hallmundarhraun and into the river Hvita. The lava field itself is made of pillow lava and formed in about 800AD. Aa and Pahoehoe flows are visible in the lava field, as well as basalt everywhere. The one kilometer-wide falls and surrounding scrublands were declared a national monument in 1987. We returned to our hostel at around 12:15am, and got some long-awaited sleep.
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