Iceland
101,161 km² · 105th largest of 193
Land borders
Nearest countries
- Ireland · 1430 km
- Norway · 1480 km
- United Kingdom · 1690 km
- Sweden · 1740 km
- Denmark · 1800 km
- Netherlands · 1950 km
Size
Facts that mention Iceland
Which country has the most active volcanoes?
Indonesia
Indonesia has roughly 130 active volcanoes, sitting where three tectonic plates meet along the Ring of Fire. Its 1815 Tambora eruption caused a year without a summer in Europe.
Which is greener, Iceland or Greenland?
Iceland, by a long way
Greenland is about 80 percent ice sheet; Iceland is largely ice-free with grassland and birch. The names are widely held to have been chosen to discourage and encourage settlement respectively.
What is unusual about Surtsey, off the coast of Iceland?
It rose from the sea recently
A volcanic eruption built it between 1963 and 1967. It is kept off-limits so scientists can watch life colonise brand-new land without interference.
Which country has no native snakes at all?
New Zealand
New Zealand separated from other landmasses before snakes spread, and has none in the wild. Ireland and Iceland are also snake-free, though for glacial rather than tectonic reasons.
Which country switched from driving on the left to the right overnight in 1967?
Sweden
Dagen H, 3 September 1967. Sweden's neighbours drove on the right and most Swedish cars were already left-hand drive. Accidents actually fell at first, as everyone drove nervously.
Which of these countries has no railway network at all?
Iceland
Iceland has never had a public railway. The population is small and dispersed, the terrain is volcanic and shifting, and roads plus coastal shipping have always been cheaper.
Iceland is unusual because it sits on what?
Two tectonic plates
The Mid-Atlantic Ridge runs right through it, so Iceland is pulling apart. You can walk between the North American and Eurasian plates at Thingvellir.
Where are the oldest known rocks on Earth's surface found?
Canada
The Acasta Gneiss in the Northwest Territories is around 4 billion years old, and rocks in northern Quebec may be older still. Ancient crust survives on stable shields, not active margins.
