Early on a November morning in 1963, off the coast of Iceland, a volcanic eruption was taking place deep under the ocean. On the surface, the crew of a nearby fishing boat were noticing some strange things: a sulfurous aroma in the air and the ocean swirling around the boat. Then, just before dawn, the volcanic eruption that had been increasing in intensity under the sea broke the surface and spewed lava miles in the air, just four miles from their fishing boat. By the next morning, something even more incredible had occurred. The cinder cone of the volcano had broken the surface of the water; a new island had been born. It was the newest place on Earth. The story of the birth of this island is powerfully told by Newbery Honor-winning author Kathryn Lasky. Christopher G. Knight’s dramatic photographs take the reader to the newest place on Earth – Surtsey island.

Surtsey: Evolution of Life on a Volcanic Island focuses on the origin of life in the island of Surtsey. The book first offers information on the Surtsey Research Society, conservation measures, and scientists that comprise the Surtsey research team. The text then focuses on the submarine eruptions off the coasts of Iceland, the flow of lava, and the formation and disappearance of islets. The book also describes the landscape that came about after the eruption. The tephra cones of the Surtur I and II craters, lava, coastal plains, and thermal areas are discussed. The text also underscores the ecological aspects of the eruption. The Icelandic biota and ecological studies on the island are discussed. The text also traces the origin of life in the island, including the dispersal of seeds by birds and "Mermaids purses." The text also underscores the origin of marine algae and marine fauna on the island. The book then emphasizes the presence of bacteria, molds, lichens, mosses, terrestrial animals, birds, and vascular plants in the island. The text also examines the outer Westman Islands. Topographical features, method of research, plant communities, and vegetation of the smaller islands are described. The book also notes the vegetation of Heimaey and the effects of insular eruptions on the southern coast of Iceland. The text is a good source of reference for readers wanting to study volcanic eruptions.

In this addition to the Scientists in the Field series, readers join scientists as they tackle something unusual in the world of ecosystems: colonization. Not a colonization by people, but one of cells, seeds, spores, and other life forms that blow in, fly in, float in, and struggle to survive on the beautiful but harsh new island of Surtsey.

Investigations on the shore and offshore morphology of the volcanic island of Surtsey off the southeastern coast of Iceland are reported. The volcanic activity that started as a submarine explosion in November 1963 ended in June 1967. A photogrammetric map of the island is in preparation. During the winter 1967/68 there was a rapid retreat of the lava cliff on the southern coast. The cliff is 10-15 m in height. The maximum retreat was 140 m and the average retreat about 75 m. The amount of lava removed by erosion is estimated at 2 million cubic meters. The shoals of former cinder-cone islands (Surtla, Syrtlingur, and Jolnir), contemporaneously built up, were found to have been abraded during the last winter. The plateaus of Jolnir and Surtla had been lowered several meters. The submarine slopes of Surtsey were investigated by SCUBA diving down to a maximum of 40 m in depth. The sandy material of the slopes of the northern point is deposited at the frictional angle of repose. There is active avalanching on these slopes. On the slopes of the southern coast angular blocks dominate. (Author).

Robert and Barbara Decker provide readers with this accessible introduction to vulcanology. With first-hand descriptions and photographs, this 4th edition has three new chapters on Volcanoes in the solar system, the Pinatubo Volcano and the Yellowstone National Park.

The birth of the island was in itself an interesting geological phenomenon but the island also became a biological laboratory, where scientists could investigate how organisms disperse across the ocean to remote islands and how plants and animals colonize completely barren areas like Surtsey whith its extremely hostile habitat, sub-arctic environment and its substrate of lava, ash and pumice. On Surtsey it was possible to demonstrate how seed and various living organisms are carried by air or ocean currents over great distances and how they manage to disperse on their own or are transported by other means. The thorough investigations carried out on Surtsey showed how the pioneers invaded the island and were gradually joined by others in forming primitive societies and simple ecosystems. These societies are then compared whith the more advanced communities on neighboring islands in order to predict the future development of life on Surtsey until it reaches its ecological climax. English language version.