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Thorvaldur Thordarson

Thorvaldur Thordarson

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Earth Science
Iceland
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Earth Science

D-Index
71
Citations
17206
World Ranking
919
National Ranking
2

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Earth Science in Iceland Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Earth Science in Iceland Leader Award
  • 2023 - Research.com Earth Science in Iceland Leader Award
  • 2022 - Research.com Earth Science in Iceland Leader Award

Overview

Thorvaldur Thordarson is affiliated with the University of Iceland in Iceland. Their research primarily spans the field of Earth and Planetary Sciences, with a significant focus on geophysics and atmospheric science, alongside contributions to earth-surface processes, environmental chemistry, and paleontology.

The scientist's work covers a range of main topics including geological and geochemical analysis, geology and paleoclimatology research, earthquake and tectonic studies, high-pressure geophysics and materials, geological formations and processes, methane hydrates and related phenomena, as well as cryospheric studies and observations.

Frequent co-authors with whom Thorvaldur Thordarson has collaborated include:

  • Ármann Höskuldsson
  • William Moreland
  • Áslaug Geirsdóttir
  • Gifford H. Miller
  • David J. Harning

Their frequent publication venues demonstrate a broad scientific engagement, including multiple articles in:

  • Bulletin of Volcanology
  • Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research
  • Geology
  • Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems
  • Nature Communications

Selected recent papers authored or co-authored by Thorvaldur Thordarson include:

  • Diverse mantle components with invariant oxygen isotopes in the 2021 Fagradalsfjall eruption, Iceland, 2022, Nature Communications
  • Evolving shallow conduit revealed by tremor and vent activity observations during episodic lava fountaining of the 2021 Geldingadalir eruption, Iceland, 2023, Bulletin of Volcanology
  • Recurrent outburst floods and explosive volcanism during the Younger Dryas-Early Holocene deglaciation in south Iceland: evidence from a lacustrine record, 2021, Journal of Quaternary Science
  • Geomorphological characterization of the 2014-2015 Holuhraun lava flow-field in Iceland, 2021, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research
  • Diffusion Timescales of Magmatic Processes in the Moinui Lava Eruption at Mauna Loa, Hawai`i, as Inferred from Bimodal Olivine Populations, 2020, Journal of Petrology

Thorvaldur Thordarson has also authored book publications, notably with Liverpool University Press, including the book titled Iceland published in 2022.

Best Publications

  • Abrupt onset of the Little Ice Age triggered by volcanism and sustained by sea‐ice/ocean feedbacks

    Gifford H. Miller;Gifford H. Miller;Áslaug Geirsdóttir;Yafang Zhong;Darren J. Larsen;Darren J. Larsen

  • Volcanism in Iceland in historical time: Volcano types, eruption styles and eruptive history

    Thorvaldur Thordarson;G. Larsen

  • Atmospheric and environmental effects of the 1783-1784 Laki eruption: A review and reassessment

    Thorvaldur Thordarson;Thorvaldur Thordarson;Stephen Self;Stephen Self

  • The Laki (Skaftár Fires) and Grímsvötn eruptions in 1783–1785

    Thorvaldur Thordarson;S Self

  • The Importance of Pahoehoe

    S. Self;L. Keszthelyi;Thorvaldur Thordarson

  • The Emperor Seamounts: Southward Motion of the Hawaiian Hotspot Plume in Earth's Mantle

    John A. Tarduno;Robert A. Duncan;David W. Scholl;Rory D. Cottrell

  • Emplacement of continental flood basalt lava flows

    Stephen Self;Thorvaldur Thordarson;Laszlo Keszthelyi

  • Ash generation and distribution from the April-May 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull, Iceland

    Magnús T. Gudmundsson;Thorvaldur Thordarson;Ármann Höskuldsson;Gudrún Larsen

  • Sulfur, chlorine, and fluorine degassing and atmospheric loading by the 1783–1784 AD Laki (Skaftár Fires) eruption in Iceland

    Thorvaldur Thordarson;S. Self;N. Oskarsson;T. Hulsebosch

  • Determination of rapid Deccan eruptions across the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary using paleomagnetic secular variation: 2. Constraints from analysis of eight new sections and synthesis for a 3500-m-thick composite section

    Anne-Lise Chenet;Vincent Courtillot;Frédéric Fluteau;Martine Gérard

  • The Roza Member, Columbia River Basalt Group: A gigantic pahoehoe lava flow field formed by endogenous processes?

    Thorvaldur Thordarson;S. Self

  • Volatile fluxes during flood basalt eruptions and potential effects on the global environment: A Deccan perspective

    Stephen Self;Mike Widdowson;Thorvaldur Thordarson;Anne. E. Jay

  • A new model for the emplacement of Columbia River basalts as large, inflated Pahoehoe Lava Flow Fields

    S. Self;Thorvaldur Thordarson;L. Keszthelyi;G. P. L. Walker

  • Strong constraints on aerosol–cloud interactions from volcanic eruptions

    Florent F. Malavelle;Jim M. Haywood;Jim M. Haywood;Andy Jones;Andrew Gettelman

  • Postglacial volcanism in Iceland

    Thorvaldur Thordarson;A. Hoskuldsson

  • Contamination of water supplies by volcanic ashfall: A literature review and simple impact modelling

    C. Stewart;D. M. Johnston;G. S. Leonard;C. J. Horwell

  • Terrestrial analogs and thermal models for Martian flood lavas

    L. Keszthelyi;A. S. McEwen;Thorvaldur Thordarson

  • High‐latitude eruptions cast shadow over the African monsoon and the flow of the Nile

    Luke Oman;Alan Robock;Georgiy L. Stenchikov;Thorvaldur Thordarson

  • Icelandic analogs to Martian flood lavas

    Laszlo P. Keszthelyi;Thorvaldur Thordarson;Alfred McEwen;Henning Haack

  • Reconstructing the deep CO2 degassing behaviour of large basaltic fissure eruptions

    Margaret E. Hartley;John Maclennan;Marie Edmonds;Thor Thordarson;Thor Thordarson

  • Studies in Volcanology: The Legacy of George Walker

    T. Thordarson;S. Self;G. Larsen;S. K. Rowland

Frequent Co-Authors

Stephen Self
Stephen Self University of California, Berkeley
Ármann Höskuldsson
Ármann Höskuldsson University of Iceland
Anja Schmidt
Anja Schmidt University of Cambridge
Ingibjörg S. Jónsdóttir
Ingibjörg S. Jónsdóttir University of Iceland
Olgeir Sigmarsson
Olgeir Sigmarsson University of Iceland
Magnús T. Gudmundsson
Magnús T. Gudmundsson University of Iceland
Laszlo P. Keszthelyi
Laszlo P. Keszthelyi United States Geological Survey
Gudrún Larsen
Gudrún Larsen University of Iceland
Bruce F. Houghton
Bruce F. Houghton University of Hawaii at Manoa
Kenneth S. Carslaw
Kenneth S. Carslaw University of Leeds

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