Ok (volcano)

{{short description|Shield volcano in Iceland}}

{{Infobox mountain

| name = Ok

| other_name = Okjökull

| photo = Image:Reykholt Ok.JPG

| photo_caption = Volcano Ok (on the right in the background) seen from the Reykholtsdalur

| elevation_m = 1198

| elevation_ref=

| prominence =

| location = Southwestern Iceland

| coordinates = {{Coord|64.598|N|20.881|W|region:IS_type:mountain:source:nlwiki|format=dms|display=it}}

| coords_ref ={{cite gvp|title=Ok|vn=371806|accessdate=2017-04-11}}

| type = Shield volcano

| age = Holocene

|embedded= {{maplink|frame=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=270|frame-height=240|frame-long=-20.9|frame-lat=64.6|zoom=8|raw=[{{Wikipedia:Map data/Askja}},{{Wikipedia:Map data/Grímsvötn}},{{Wikipedia:Map data/Öræfi volcanic belt}},{{Wikipedia:Map data/Hofsjökull}},{{Wikipedia:Map data/Katla}},{{Wikipedia:Map data/Hengill}},{{Wikipedia:Map data/Snæfellsnes volcanic belt}}]

|text=Selected geological features near the Ok shield volcano (red outline) and its lava field (violet shading). {{Wikipedia:Map data/Askja/key}}

}}

}}

File:Okjökull glacier commemorative plaque on rock.jpg

Ok ({{IPA|is|ˈɔːk|audio=Ok pronunciation.ogg}}; {{cvt|1198|m}}[http://www.lmi.is/landmaelingar.nsf/pages/Landfraedilegarupplysingar.html National Land Survey of Iceland (Icelandic)] {{webarchive|url=http://wayback.vefsafn.is/wayback/20041103050805/www.lmi.is/landmaelingar.nsf/pages/Landfraedilegarupplysingar.html |date=2004-11-03 }}) is a shield volcano in Iceland, to the west of Langjökull. It erupted during interglacials in the Pleistocene,Einarsson, Þorleifur: "Geology of Iceland", page 67. Mál og Menning, 2005. and is in proximity to the Prestahnúkur and Oddnýjarhnjúkur-Langjökull volcanic systems. The volcano was once topped by the Okjökull glacier, which may now only be represented by isolated patches of ice,{{cite journal|last1 =Howe|first1 =C.|last2 =Boyer|first2=D.|year =2024|title =The Okjökull Memorial and Geohuman Relations|journal =Social Anthropology/Anthropologie Sociale|volume =32|issue =1|pages =30–45|doi =10.3167/saas.2024.320104|doi-access=free}} even if still shown on current maps.{{cite web|title=National Land Survey of Iceland-Mapviewer (Kortasja-Landmælingar Íslands) |url=https://kortasja.lmi.is/mapview/ |access-date=19 May 2024}} At its top is the crater lake of Blávatn, which can freeze over.{{cite news|url =https://www.visir.is/g/2019190819519|author =Hallgerður Kolbrún E. Jónsdóttir|title =Nasa birtir myndir af hverfandi ísbreiðu Oks |newspaper =Vísir|language =Icelandic |date =August 13, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190916110645/https://www.visir.is/g/2019190819519|archive-date=16 September 2019}}

While the volcano itself historically had little attention, its absent glacier has been used to symbolise recent climate change.[http://www.visindavefur.hi.is/svar.asp?id=4181 Vísindavefurinn (Icelandic)][https://www.icelandreview.com/news/first-glacier-lost-to-climate-change-to-be-memorialised/ Iceland Review Online] The lost glacier was the subject of a documentary, Not Ok, in 2018, produced by Cymene Howe and Dominic Boyer. In August 2019, the glacier was memorialised with a plaque on site, the English text of which, written by Andri Snær Magnason, reads:{{Cite web|url=https://www.gettyimages.ie/detail/news-photo/monument-is-unveiled-at-site-of-okjokull-icelands-first-news-photo/1162517092|title = A monument is unveiled at site of Okjokull, Iceland's first glacier}}

A letter to the future
Ok is the first Icelandic glacier to lose its status as a glacier. In the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it.
August 2019
415PPM CO₂Amy McCaig, '[https://www.news.rice.edu/2019/07/18/lost-glacier-to-be-honored-with-memorial-monument Lost glacier to be honored with memorial monument] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510195224/https://news.rice.edu/2019/07/18/lost-glacier-to-be-honored-with-memorial-monument/ |date=2021-05-10 }}' (18 July 2019).