Why Iceland's lava is so hard to control

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Arianna Soldati |

TED-Ed

• May 2026

In December 2023, Icelandic citizens experienced their worst nightmare: a volcanic fissure opened and began spewing lava fountains 100 meters tall. While the molten rock narrowly avoided a small town, Iceland wasn’t willing to leave anyone's fate to chance again and began preparing for future eruptions. Arianna Soldati explores 3 potential strategies to control these red-hot rivers of destruction. [Directed by Anastasiia Falileieva, Studio Plastic Bag, narrated by Bethany Cutmore-Scott, music by Zakhar Bo].