Öræfajökull
Seismicity by period · derived statistics from Skjálftalísa (Icelandic Met Office)
Status (automatic)
No particular signs of unrest in the last 24 hours — 0 earthquakes recorded, within the system's normal range.🕰️ Last eruption / event — ~299 years ago
Last historical eruption (~1727). Iceland's tallest volcano. The 1362 eruption destroyed an entire region (Litla-Hérað). Caldera uplift 2017-2018 — first sign of unrest in a century.
Iceland's highest volcano (Hvannadalshnjúkur). The 1362 eruption was one of the deadliest in the country's history and destroyed the district of Litla-Hérað; erupted again in 1727. Rare but very powerful. (overview — more at vedur.is) · circle on the map = rough outline of the system (radius).
Subglacial system: a subglacial eruption can cause a jökulhlaup (sudden glacial meltwater flood) with little warning, and volcanic gases (incl. SO₂, CO₂) can be dangerous near vents and may pool in hollows. These are standing features of the system, not a sign of an imminent eruption.
📜 Did you know?
The region was called Hérað before the 1362 eruption. After it (VEI 5, ~10 km³ tephra — one of the largest explosive eruptions in historical time) the region was renamed Öræfi — wasteland. The name persists today. An estimated 200-400 people died.
Historical eruptions in the system — points colored by size, blue circle shows where we are now in time.
❓ What if Öræfajökull erupts?
Timeline: Land has risen ~70 mm at Öræfajökull 2017-2018 (first sign of unrest in a century). Likely months to years of preparation before any eruption. Explosive eruption: Iceland's tallest volcano (2,110 m). The 1362 eruption was Iceland's largest known explosive event — destroyed an entire region (Litla-Hérað). Peak ash ~25-30 km altitude. Jökulhlaup: Down Virkisá, Kotá and Svínafellsá (Skeiðará belongs to Grímsvötn, NOT Öræfajökull). Peak flow ~30,000-100,000 m³/s. Skaftafell National Park and Höfn í Hornafirði at risk. Ring Road closes. Last eruption: 1727 (small), the major 1362 eruption. Sources: Wikipedia, Met Office monitoring (vedur.is/eldfjoll/oraefajokull).
This is not a forecast. Based on historical experience and official hazard assessments from the Met Office / Civil Protection.
Points = earthquake locations in the selected window, coloured by magnitude: ● M3+ · ● M2+ · ● smaller (a sample if more than 800).
Earthquakes
0
Largest
–
M3,0+
0
Depth range
–
Earthquakes over time
Cumulative count · 0 earthquakes · count moment
Depth (0 km at top).
Not enough depth data.
Magnitude distribution
Earthquakes
0
Largest
–
M3,0+
0
Depth range
–
Earthquakes over time
Cumulative count · 0 earthquakes · count moment
Depth (0 km at top).
Not enough depth data.
Magnitude distribution
Earthquakes
7
Largest
M1.4
M3,0+
0
Depth range
0–8 km
Earthquakes over time
Cumulative count · 7 earthquakes · total moment ≈ M1.4 · count moment
Depth (0 km at top). Grey: fixed depth.
Magnitude distribution
Depth cross-sections — color by age (orange=newest, grey=older), point size by M. Rising cluster = possible magma intrusion.
Earthquakes
10
Largest
M1.4
M3,0+
0
Depth range
0–8 km
Earthquakes over time
Cumulative count · 10 earthquakes · total moment ≈ M1.4 · count moment
Depth (0 km at top). Grey: fixed depth.
Magnitude distribution
Depth cross-sections — color by age (orange=newest, grey=older), point size by M. Rising cluster = possible magma intrusion.
Earthquakes
191
Largest
M2.9
M3,0+
0
Depth range
0–11 km
Earthquakes over time
Cumulative count · 191 earthquakes · total moment ≈ M3.0 · count moment
Depth (0 km at top) — shallowing in the data (4.9→3.3 km). Grey: fixed depth.
Magnitude distribution
Depth cross-sections — color by age (orange=newest, grey=older), point size by M. Rising cluster = possible magma intrusion.
Note: before February 2026 about half of events lacked an automatic magnitude, so magnitude-dependent figures (b-value, count of M≥X) under-count earlier periods — the catalogue is not homogeneous across this window. Cumulative moment is barely affected.
Earthquakes
371
Largest
M2.9
M3,0+
0
Depth range
0–14 km
Earthquakes over time
Cumulative count · 371 earthquakes · total moment ≈ M3.0 · count moment
Depth (0 km at top). Grey: fixed depth.
Magnitude distribution
Depth cross-sections — color by age (orange=newest, grey=older), point size by M. Rising cluster = possible magma intrusion.
Note: before February 2026 about half of events lacked an automatic magnitude, so magnitude-dependent figures (b-value, count of M≥X) under-count earlier periods — the catalogue is not homogeneous across this window. Cumulative moment is barely affected.
Depth is automatic and uncertain; earthquakes alone do not show magma movement — deformation (GPS) and gas are needed. Grey points: automatic fixed-depth values. b-value computed for M≥1.5 (automatic magnitudes make lower completeness unreliable). Preliminary data.
🌊 Volcanic tremor — Volcanic tremor is currently at a normal baseline and should only be compared to recent d…
IMO tremor plot (station fag). Most of the signal is weather and surf — not eruption confirmation. All stations: vedur.is.
Volcanic tremor is currently at a normal baseline and should only be compared to recent days since wind and waves do not affect the readings. (AI)
Band analysis past 9 days (from digitized RSAM values). High 2-4 Hz + low 0.5-1 Hz = possible magma-movement signal; high 0.5-1 Hz without 2-4 Hz = weather/surf.
Earthquakes in the system
| Time (UTC) | Mag | Depth | Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-07 03:37 | M0.4 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-06 22:17 | M1.4 | 5.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-06 05:23 | M-0.7 | 8.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-06 04:52 | M0.2 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-06 04:52 | M0.5 | 0.3 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-04 11:24 | M-0.3 | 2.5 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-03 10:27 | M-0.8 | 5.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-03 03:54 | M-1.0 | 5.0 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-06-02 03:13 | M-0.1 | 2.8 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-05-27 04:38 | M-0.3 | 0.5 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-05-10 13:04 | M2.0 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-05-10 06:45 | M0.1 | 7.4 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-05-05 23:09 | M0.2 | 5.3 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-05-01 09:17 | M0.0 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-04-25 18:16 | M0.4 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-04-21 17:19 | M0.2 | 0.5 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-04-21 03:53 | M0.2 | 4.0 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-04-07 18:33 | M0.1 | 5.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-04-07 08:19 | M0.4 | 5.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-04-03 22:46 | M0.7 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-04-03 14:00 | M0.0 | 6.9 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-03-15 11:42 | M0.8 | 5.0 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-02-23 08:07 | M0.1 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-02-19 08:21 | M0.2 | 5.3 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-02-14 19:50 | M0.0 | 6.5 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-24 19:33 | M0.7 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 04:59 | – | 7.3 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 03:07 | M-0.7 | 4.0 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:39 | M-0.3 | 4.3 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:16 | M0.2 | 4.3 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:15 | M-0.8 | 4.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:14 | – | 3.6 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:13 | – | 5.4 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:11 | M-0.7 | 5.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:06 | – | 2.0 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 02:03 | – | 11.0 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 01:59 | M-0.2 | 4.3 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-15 01:58 | M-0.7 | 4.7 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-14 21:13 | – | 3.4 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-14 19:30 | M-0.8 | 5.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-10 14:03 | M0.5 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-07 03:52 | – | 3.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-06 09:20 | M-0.7 | 5.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-06 00:50 | – | 7.8 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-04 03:15 | M-0.8 | 5.6 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-03 19:28 | M-0.2 | 10.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-02 10:23 | – | 4.6 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-01 20:32 | M-0.8 | 7.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-01 01:33 | – | 2.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-01 01:25 | – | 0.8 | Önnur svæði |
| 2026-01-01 00:44 | M1.3 | 2.0 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-30 08:20 | – | 0.6 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-30 06:29 | – | 0.8 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-30 04:56 | – | 5.9 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-30 02:06 | M0.4 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-29 22:14 | M0.3 | 3.2 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-29 18:26 | M1.4 | 1.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-29 18:26 | – | 0.5 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-29 14:40 | M0.4 | 5.1 | Önnur svæði |
| 2025-12-29 14:32 | M1.5 | 1.4 | Önnur svæði |
System journal
Automatic snapshots and media coverage, in chronological order. Subscribe: RSS · ntfy
skjalftar-oraefajokull2026-06-07 03:40:05 UTC
In the last 24 hours, five earthquakes were recorded at Öræfajökull, Iceland's highest volcano, indicating increased activity compared to the weekly average. This frequency is higher than usual for the area and most closely resembles the period around October 5, 2024. The largest earthquake was magnitude M1.4, and these are automatic preliminary results. Further details on trends can be found below.2026-06-06 22:25:04 UTC
In the last 24 hours, four earthquakes were recorded at Öræfajökull, Iceland's highest volcano, indicating increasing activity that remains within normal levels for this area. The largest event was magnitude M1.4 with a cumulative moment of Mw 1.4 over the past 48 hours, based on automatic preliminary results. Current activity most closely resembles the period around October 6, 2024, in terms of earthquake count. Further details on trends and measurements are available below.What do the numbers mean — and what should I do?
β (swarm signal): how high activity is versus the area's 2-year average. β above 2 means an ongoing swarm. It measures activity, not a forecast of a large quake.
Cumulative moment (Mw): the combined energy of the quakes in the period. Uplift (GNSS): whether the ground is rising or sinking, mm per year — the data are a few weeks old. Some systems (e.g. Svartsengi) deform in steps during eruption cycles rather than at a steady annual rate.
Swarm character is computed for a whole volcanic belt, not a single system — it describes the belt, not necessarily this one system.
What should I do? This is automatic monitoring for information — not an official warning. Follow official information from the Icelandic Met Office and Civil Protection (112).
Data: Icelandic Met Office (Skjálftalísa API), automatic preliminary results — may change. This is not an official warning. Official warnings: vedur.is and Civil Protection (112).