Volcano, that is – While the effects of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull are slowly beginning to dissipate, there are new worries about the Katla volcano, which is hidden beneath another ice cap 12 miles away. It erupts much more often than Eyjafjallajokull and with much greater force and an even larger plume of ash.

On the Discovery Channel website, Casey Kazan reports that Katla produced one of the world’s largest known lava flows around 900 AD. Geologists think the two volcanoes are link by shared magma channels, which is why they often erupt one after the other. Katla erupts about every 80 years, the last time in 1918, which means it’s overdue for another one.Iceland is at the intersection of different tectonic plates. In some parts of the world these plates are pushing together and riding over each other, in this part of the world they tend to separate, so that it’s easy for the magma, on which the plates ride, to erupt on the surface.

The Business Insider website reports that Eyjafjallajokull and Katla are not alone: There are a whole line of craters in the area, and Laki, which lies along this line, is an even greater threat than Katla. When it erupted in 1783, the ash it released changed the weather, causing crop failure in the UK. The ash plume from the first eruption is now almost invisible, even in Iceland, but its health threat remains. The ash contains sulfur dioxide, which is a major lung and throat irritant that can even lead to death. The gas released by Laki in the 18th century led to many of these deaths, as well as to famine.

There are no volcanoes in Nashville, just sunny days and lots of music. And we have even more than music in store for you during the last week in June: We have important new information from all your favorite Dreamland hosts, plus the chance to meet them in person!

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