6 October 2016

Oddball Icelandic rocks, part I: A green ignimbrite

Posted by Callan Bentley

Most of Iceland is basalt.

But there are a few less common rock types to be found. We stumbled on one in the eastern fjords region, on the northern margin of Berufjörður. It was a volcanic conlgomerate, maybe an ignimbrite, and it was G R E E N.

Here’s the lovely setting of the intriguing outcrop:

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…And the cliff itself, spalling off bouders and cobbles galore:

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A few example cobbles from the adjacent beach:

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And now for three GigaPan views – two outcrops (I think the first one shows an unconformable contact in the lower right) and a cobble I brought home with me:

Link Handheld GigaPan by Callan Bentley

Link Handheld GigaPan by Callan Bentley

Link GIGAmacro by Robin Rohrback

I suppose after Eyjafjallajökull’s explosive eruptions in 2010, I shouldn’t be surprised to see such a rock in Iceland, but I was nonetheless. After nothing but black basalt, this green ignimbrite was a sight for sore eyes.