A cross-sectional view of the former coastline at the Seljalandsfoss waterfall, Southern Iceland, looking east
The thick Pleistocene ice cap covering Iceland towards the end of the Ice Age pushed the land down, so that when the ice melted, and sea level rose suddenly, the sea flooded far inland. The marine transgression was short-lived, however. With the release of billions of tonnes of ice weight the land started to 'spring back' to its pre-Ice Age height, causing the sea to recede rapidly. Rivers, uplifted with the land, tumbled over the emerging cliffs to reach the lower sea-level. When the land had completely recovered some 8000 years ago, the cliffs of the former coastline were abandoned, fronted by a broad coastal plain, formerly part of the sea bed. Beyond the coastal plain in this view we can see the outline of the volcanic Westmann Islands, off Iceland's southern coast.
Size: 5218px × 3465px
Location: Seljalandsfoss Waterfall, Eyjafjoll, Southern Iceland
Photo credit: © robert harrison / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
Keywords: broad, change, cliffs, clouds, coastal, coastline, geography, geology, iceland, isostasy, isostatic, landscape, level, plain, recession, rivers, sea, sea-bed, sky, tourism, uplift, waterfall
