Páll Einarsson is one of the most experienced earth scientists in Iceland and he has taken part in extensive research on a large number of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions in Iceland and elsewhere. The symphonies played by nature appeal to Einarsson, however, this is not his only connection with music because he is also a trained cellist and has a degree in harmonics and he uses the instrument to take a rest from the stresses of earth sciences.
Einarsson listens to the harmonics of the earth using sophisticated equipment that can predict eruptions and other events with the help of scientists’ interpretation. “Using well positioned measuring instruments in Iceland we can follow processes in the Earth’s crust that are hard to get in touch with elsewhere. Every new eruption and earthquake provides data that are the basis for research into the nature of these phenomena. We sense a great and growing interest from scientists in other countries in our conclusions.”
Einarsson says that his research projects mostly concern tectonics and connected processes: cause and effect. “This includes plate movement, volcanic activity, earthquakes, fissure movement, changes in altitude due to diminishing glaciers and a lot more,” says Einarsson and smiles – he is a scientist sought out by the media when earthquakes or eruptions need to be explained.
Besides being a devoted and popular teacher Einarsson works at the Earth Sciences Institute with a dynamic and tightly knit research team. Einarsson is also actively involved in collaboration with other institutes, domestically and internationally. Music and geology can be said to pull at Einarsson, a pull analogous to the underlying tension which characterises Iceland’s basic nature. “Iceland provides an especially convenient locale for geological research. The country is positioned where two plates meet and is one of the hot spots of the Earth. The University’s students are privileged in this and are very active in research, both at the under-graduate and graduate level.”
Einarson‘s interest in earth science was sparked when he was a teenager, and in the end won over the music. “The Surtsey, Askja and Hekla eruptions were important in this development. The Surtsey Conference in 1967 attracted a large number of foreign scientists and increased domestic interest in research. Simultaneously the theory of plate tectonics was gaining momentum and I had the privilege to work on the first study of plate movements that was performed here,” Einarsson says.
This year another Surtsey Conference will take place here to commemorate the 50 year anniversary of Surtsey.
