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Jokulsarlon is a glacial lagoon in southeastern Iceland, near Vatnajokull National Park, and is a popular tourist destination in the country. The area was formed entirely naturally by the melting of icebergs.
The Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon in Iceland is part of the Breidamerkurjokull glacier. When the first Icelanders arrived around 900 AD, the Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon did not exist; only the Breidamerkurjokull glacier, approximately 20 km long, flowed north and emptied into the sea.
The area has been expanding steadily since 1970 as the ice continued to melt. Today, the Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon is 1,500 meters long and covers an area of approximately 18 square kilometers, making it the deepest glacier in Iceland, with a depth of nearly 250 meters.
As regional temperatures gradually rose between 1920 and 1965, the Breidamerkurjokull glacier began melting in various locations, creating icebergs of diverse shapes and sizes, and forming the Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon as we know it today.
However, the ice in Jokulsarlon Lagoon remains almost "motionless" during the winter, neither moving nor melting. It is only in the summer, when temperatures rise, that the ice gradually melts and flows downstream into the sea.
Today, Jokulsarlon is a popular tourist destination, attracting many visitors to Iceland. Located next to Iceland's national highway, it's very convenient for sightseeing.
There are usually buses that go to the Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon and stop there for about an hour before returning to the city. Therefore, if you want to visit Jokulsarlon, the bus is the ideal mode of transportation.
