Iceland grows 2.5 cm every year: Here's why

If you ever heard that a country can grow in size with time, would you believe us? Yes, that’s the case with Iceland, an island nation in the Atlantic Ocean, located near the Arctic Circle, between Greenland and Norway.  

Iceland is being torn apart  
The country is growing by about 2.5 cm per year, as it splits wider at the points where two tectonic plates meet. Now you must be thinking about what tectonic plates are. Let us explain.  

To put down in simple words, tectonic plates are massive, irregularly-shaped slabs of solid rock that divide our Earth’s crust. These plates move constantly to reshape the Earth's landscape and their size can vary greatly, from a few hundred to thousands of kilometres across.  

Iceland is sitting atop the Mid-Atlantic Ridge tectonic plate boundary that separates the Eurasian and the North American plates. It is slowly splitting apart with the North American plate moving westward from the Eurasian plate. Every few years a land survey measures the precise location of fixed points around Iceland to keep track of the drifting of the tectonic plates. According to the last survey, the rate of the country spreading averages about 2.5 cm per year.  

Iceland is also rising  
That’s not all. Apart from growing in size, Iceland is also rising.  Yes, you read it right! But how is that possible? Remember, Iceland is all ice. So, the warming of the planet  with climate change is directly causing the sea level to rise by causing the melting of Iceland’s glaciers and ice sheets and adding more water to the ocean.  

So what could be the downside? Well, researchers believe that the rise in the sea level could be the cause of an increase in volcanic activity in the island nation in the past few years. This is because they think there is a strong long-established link between the large-scale melting of ice in active volcanic regions such as Iceland and increased volcanic eruptions. 

But you would now think what does the sea level have to do with the volcanoes? Ok, so as glaciers and ice sheets melt, pressure is taken off Earth’s surface and there are changes in the forces acting on rocks within its crust and its upper mantle (the layer between the Earth’s crust and its outer core). This, as scientists believe, can lead to more molten rock, or “magma”, being produced in the mantle – which can produce more volcanic eruptions. 

Icelandic facts  

• Do you know Iceland is home to Europe’s first Parliament? Yes, the Althing is Iceland’s national parliament and it is one of the longest-running parliaments in the world.  
• Iceland’s land mass comprises glaciers, lava, sand, water and pasture. About 10 per cent of the country is covered by glaciers, including Vatnajökull glacier, the largest in Europe. 
• Iceland is the least populated country in Europe. Almost 80% of the country is uninhabited.  
• Iceland’s highest peak is Hvannadalshnjúkur, standing 6852 ft above sea level.