yesterdays APOD

Can I just say that Iceland is awesome!! check this out!


Volcano and Aurora in Iceland
Credit: Sigurdur H. Stefnisson

Explanation: Sometimes both heaven and Earth erupt. In Iceland in 1991, the volcano Hekla erupted at the same time that auroras were visible overhead. Hekla, one of the most famous volcanoes in the world, has erupted at least 20 times over the past millennium, sometimes causing great destruction. The last eruption occurred only six years ago but caused only minor damage. The green auroral band occurred fortuitously about 100 kilometers above the erupting lava. Is Earth the Solar System's only planet with both auroras and volcanos?

The people there are definitely hard core too.. putting up with winter and all that (I miss it). I was reading one of my favorite get-mad-at-stupid-people books Control of Nature by John McPhee and he's got this story in there about Iceland - it's the only one that doesn't make me angry. He tells this story about a fishing boat sinking and the one guy who survived SWAM back to shore. I think it took him 4 hours.. in that freezing, alomst arctic circle ocean water. I wouldn't have made it, cause then he walked dripping wet to some place to dry off and eat and all that jazz.

AND.. David and I just found out that 10% of the Icelanic population "definitely" believe in the existance of elves. Check out this quote from Health and Spirituality..

The village of Hafnarfjordur outside Reykjavik looks like any other little coastal town. A couple of boats in the harbor and a few streets with your average shops and businesses make the place alive. The only thing that sets it apart is the lava field surrounding the town — and that humans say they share their space with the elf people.

kickass! I love elves =) I was just telling Dave the other day that if I could have any kind of ears that are out there.. elf ears would definitely be in the top 3.

AND also from the same article...

According to surveys, 10 percent of Icelanders believe in elves. Another staggering 80 percent will not say they exactly believe, but neither are they willing to totally rule out their existence.

If you want to read the whole article click here..