VIDEO: Grimsvotn volcano in Iceland erupting
Will Brinson
Really, it’s just a plume of smoke and a lot of lightning.
But watching the Grimsvotn volcano in Iceland explode in video form is beyond fascinating.
Could you imagine being there? Well that’s where Jon Gustafsson (please tell me I’m not the only one who immediately thought of Grumpy Old Men … please) was while working for the Helicopter Service of Iceland and helping to film this beaut.
The description of his experience is kind of insane too, if only because of how calmly — “not desirable” (!!!) — he describes the insanity of being near an exploding volcano.
“It took us 90 minutes to fly to Grimsvotn with a strong wind against us,” Gustafsson wrote on his Vimeo page. “The eruption looked magnificent in the sunset. Once we landed 5 miles away from the crater the cold glacier air hit us like a truck. We tried to work outside but I only lasted for a couple of minutes.
“The light was also disappearing and he needs visual reference which is difficult on a white glacier. Once we got off the ground again we had to stay low because there were so many lightnings all around the eruption. Getting hit by a lightning in that strong wind, extreme frost and next to a live volcano was not desirable.”
Volcanic Eruption in Grimsvotn, Iceland May 21 2011 from Jon Gustafsson on Vimeo.
comment on this story
blog comments powered by Disqus