Vestmannaeyjar volcanic system is composed of a group of volcanic islands that are basaltic with submarine cones that is located in the southernmost coast of Iceland. It is the east volcanic rift zone’s youngest volcanic center that divides east-central Iceland and occupies a shallow shelf of the south end. The recent eruptions that took place in Iceland are situated in Vestmannaeyjar which is a submarine volcanic system. In the past several volcanic eruptions were noted in history and about 22 postglacial eruption sites are located in this Vestmannaeyjar system.
Surtsey, is an island of Vestmannaeyjar volcanic system and created from the ocean floor from a volcanic eruption that started about 426 ft below sea level and arrive at the surface in November 1963, away from the south coast of Iceland. The eruption was noted to end in 1967 as the island of 2.7 km2 was created. But it underwent wind erosion and wave erosion and what is left now is the surface area of only 1.4 km2. The Surtsey volcano is also one of the submarine volcanoes and the eruption style was vociferous and mildly explosive. The eruption was noted as to be explosive phreatomagmatic type as it occurred in ocean bed where water came in direct contact with the erupting vents that hurled rocks up to more than one kilometer away and propelled ash clouds to more than 10 km height up. The fresh magma in contact with water created clouds of dust during the eruption.
The undersea vents of Surtsey are sections of Vestmannaeyjar submarine volcanic system with sections of fissure of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge sea floor. With Surtsey Island, the eruption also created few islands down the volcanic chain as well lie Jólnir and various unspecified peaks some of which eroded with time.