Earth is splitting apart in Iceland and humans can literally fall through the crack

Iceland’s Silfra fissure is the only place in the world where you can swim between two tectonic plates. The North American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling away from one another, leading to the creation of a system of tectonic fissures of which Silfra is a part. This split is widening at the rate of just under one inch per year. Silfra is located in the Þingvellir National Park and directly on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. It measures approximately 1,968 x 656 feet, including some portions that are out of bounds to tourists. People swim in Silfra where the water temperatures range between 2°C and 4°C. But people still take a dip into this fissure formation for snorkelling and scuba diving.

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As mentioned above, the Silfra fissure is made up of cracks, and one such crack can suck in swimmers and throw them out at a depth of 53 feet. Because of this feature, it is known as the Toilet, because it basically imitates the same act. The flow of water is so strong here that it can pull you into a vertical narrow drop that opens over 50 feet away.

The Toilet drop feature

The Silfra fissure is over 195 feet deep in some places. The crack between the two tectonic plates has made this region extremely dangerous. But the Toilet wasn't always off-limits, and swimmers have explored it before. In 1789, a series of earthquakes caused many more cracks to open up. The land was torn apart, and one of the cracks connected to an underground spring system and filled with glacial meltwater.

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The age of the Silfra fissure is also not clear. However, according to the Thingvellir National Park website, “according to records of the speed of the continental drift, a 10-metre-wide fissure would take at least 1500 years to form, given a drift of 5 millimetres per year.”

Why water remains so cold in Silfra

The water is always cold, no matter the season. This is because meltwater from the Langjökull glacier covers 48 kilometres to reach Silfra, and the process takes decades as it filters through volcanic rock. It is not exposed to surface heat at all, and so there is no way for it to warm up, hence causing it to remain cool. This filtration makes the water so clear that visibility reaches 330 feet.

Not a lot of animals live in Silfra because of these freezing conditions. The only creatures found are microscopic organisms and neon green algae named ‘troll hair’. An amphipod called Crymostygius thingvallensis can also be found in the water here.