Iceland is known as the land of fire and ice. They’re also known for their famous Blue Lagoon, a geothermal spa, which has a high silica content, and gives the waters their trademark blue color.
It’s also one of the most visited tourist attractions in all of Iceland.
A NASA satellite image shows a fissure of lava encroaching on Iceland’s famous Blue Lagoon, as well as the small town of Grindavík.
Photographer Vilhelm Gunnarsson shows the destruction caused by the slow moving lava, as it eats away at the perimeter of the Blue Lagoon facility.
Lava and fire destroying a road that runs to the Blue Lagoon.
Construction crews work frantically to build a barrier to prevent the flowing lava to further destroy one of Iceland’s most iconic spots.
Aerial photographs show the lava taking over the parking lot for the Blue Lagoon.
A dramatic drone photograph shows the massive lava flow as it encroaches on the road, and nears the Svartsengi power plant.
We love this image, which shows the raw power of nature, as flowing lava erases a two lane road on the way to Iceland’s Blue Lagoon.
Iceland is no stranger to eruptions, and has to deal with lava flows more than any other country on earth.
Covering this type of event is no small feat for Gunnarsson as well, who is required to have a gas mask, gas meter, helmet, Tetra radio, plus a special press card to photograph the dangerous lava.
Over his time photographing lava, he’s lost 5 drones in the process.
Here we can see a road sign starting to melt in the enormous heat from the lava.
While the Blue Lagoon is temporarily closed for caution, they’re optimistic that the lagoons themselves will be spared, and the facility will reopen in the near future.
Taken before the recent eruption, we see the beautiful blue color of the Blue Lagoon, caused by silica in the water.
Images © NASA and Vilhelm Gunnarsson. Used with artist’s permission. Via PetaPixel:
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5 Comments
Thanks for your story, so glad you were able to experience it. And yes, it seems like the people of Iceland can handle this better than just about anyone!
My wife aND I were there just a couple months ago and took pics of the fissure and smoke j such from a distance. The entire area is lava rock with the walks and roads cut through it to get to the lagoon itself it is stunning and the power of nature awe inspiring to say the least. Because iceland deals with this so often they should be able to spare the lagoon and once the worst of the danger subsides I have no doubt that within a couple months if not weeks folks will be able to go there again.
Stunning photography and good background on how the images were captured – thanks for sharing!
I hope the blue lagoon is spared and the lava diverts.This place is my bucket list.
Powerful