THE MOUNTAINS

Hvannadalshnukur

Hvannadalshnukur (pronounced KWANNA-dalsh-nyooker) is the highest peak in Iceland at 2119 meters. It is actually the highest point on a crater rim of the volcano, Oræfajökull, located in extreme southeast Iceland only a few kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean. The volcano itself is massive, the largest post-glacial volcano in Iceland and, according to my research, only exceeded in mass by Etna as far as European volcanoes go. But this fact pales in comparison when you consider that Oræfajökull is but a small part of the massive glacier, Vatnajökull.

Vatnajökull (meaning Lake Glacier, named after sub-glacial lakes under its center) is the largest glacier in Iceland and the largest glacial ice cap in Europe. At approximately 8500 square kilometers, it is larger than all of continental Europe's glaciers put together. To give American's some idea of the size of this chunk of ice, it is a bit larger than the state of Connecticut. This glacier takes up 1/12 of the country of Iceland and contains approximately 3300 cubic kilometers of ice. The average thickness of the glacier is 400 meters with the greatest thickness being over 1100 meters. It is interesting that scientists believe it was not formed during the last great Ice Age but during a cold period about 2500 years ago.

Vatnajökull has had five recorded eruptions with the latest three coming in 1996, 1998 and most recently in 2004.

Cotopaxi, Ecuador
Cotopaxi is a stratovolcano in the Andeswith a summit elevation of 19,388 feet (5,911 m), located about 75 kilometres (50 mi) south of Quito, Ecuador. It is the second highest in the country, after Chimborazo. Cotopaxi has an almost symmetrical cone that rises from a highland plain of about 3,800 metres (12,500 ft), with a width at its base of about 23 kilometres (14 mi).[3] It has one of the few equatorial glaciers in the world, which starts at the height of 5,000 metres (16,400 ft). The mountain is clearly visible on the skyline from Quito.

Kilimanjaro with its three volcanic cones, Kibo, Mawensi, and Shira, is an inactive stratovolcano in north-eastern Tanzania. Although it does not have the highest elevation, Kilimanjaro is the tallest free-standing mountain rise[1] in the world,[2] rising 4,600 m (15,100 ft) from its base, and includes the highest peak in Africa at 5,895 metres (19,340 ft), providing a dramatic view from the surrounding plains.



Click on the links below for more information and photos of Kilimanjaro.
Wikipedia link to Kilimanjaro
http://7summits.com/kilimanjaro/kilimanjaro.php
http://www.tanzaniaodyssey.com/mount-kilimanjaro/kilimanjaro.htm
http://volcano.und.edu/vwdocs/volc_images/img_kilimanjaro.html