Divergence!

Hi!

Right now we are back at our hotel in Reykjavik, and reflecting on what we saw today. I didn't fall asleep the entire day even though I haven't slept for about 22 hours, The trip to Þingvellir

 was amazing, even though we didn't get to put a foot on either side of the plate boundary. Look below and you'll see what I mean:

http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/photos/plate-tectonics-gallery/#/thingvellir-iceland_1247_600x450.jpg

The Eurasian plate is on the right and the North American plate is on the left. The cliff separates the two plates. I didn't even try to put one foot on both sides of the plate boundary! Here is a picture of where the boundary goes through Iceland:

http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/understanding.html

The plate boundary cuts right down Iceland splitting it into 2 pieces. As I explained in my previous blog post, at a divergent boundary like here the plates spread apart and molten rock cools. Eventually Iceland will become 2 separate islands.