Rocky Pillars in Iceland Formed in Rare Volcanic Event

Rocky, hollow pillars located in Iceland's Skaelingar valley likely formed when lava met water without an explosion happening, according to researchers from the University at Buffalo.

Published in the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, the report highlights a phenomenon most common two miles below the ocean's surface.

"Usually, when lava and water meet in aerial environments, the water instantly flashes to steam," Tracy Gregg, an associate professor of geology, said in a statement. "That's a volume increase of eight times -- boom."

Formations like the ones in Iceland are common deep in the ocean because the pressure is so immense that it squashes any attempt at an explosion.

"They've never been described on land before, and it's important because it tells us that water and lava can come together on land and not explode," she explained. "This has implications for the way we view volcanic risk."

Iceland's pillars were formed in the 1780s when lava from a nearby eruption entered the valley, which Gregg says was likely either covered by pond or otherwise swampy at the time. The reason there was no eruption, she thinks, was because the lava moved so slowly, just centimeters per second. This in turn allowed it react with the water in a "kinder, gentler" way.

"If you're driving your car at 5 miles per hour and you hit a stop sign, it's a lot different than if you hit that same stop sign at 40 miles an hour," she said. "There's a lot more energy that will be released."

Gregg first saw the pillars when she was hiking the area with her husband.

"I knew as soon as I saw them what they were," she said. "I had, at that time, been on submarine cruises and seen these things deep under the sea, so I was just hysterical, saying, 'Look at these!' So I ran around and started taking pictures until the light started running out."