In Geldingadalur, Iceland, there lies a flat-topped mountain called Fagradalsfjall. It's a barren, windblown, rock-strewn area. Few people ever paid it a visit. But now it's become a major tourist attraction. On March 19, molten lava started flowing out of a fissure near the mountain. Except for a few brief pauses, it hasn't stopped since. As a result, Iceland - which depends on tourism for about 33% of its GDP - is getting a big boost. The ongoing eruption is one of the world's most visible geothermal events today. But this latest volcanic eruption isn't the only geothermal activity in Iceland. It turns out that the country is a hot spot (pun intended) for geothermal energy. Geothermal Hot Spot The North Atlantic island harnesses the heat of Earth. And it's been getting most of its energy needs that way for decades. Its geothermal power plants tap superheated water reservoirs. Water is pumped to the surface, flashed to steam and used to spin turbines connected to electric generators. However, the U.S. is the world's leader when it comes to geothermal energy. At the end of last year, it had about 3.67 gigawatts of installed geothermal capacity. That's almost 25% of the world's total. About 90% of this capacity is in California and Nevada. In fact, The Geysers, located in the Mayacamas Mountains in California, is the largest geothermal field in the world. This area contains 18 geothermal power plants and produces 20% of California's renewable energy. Still, geothermal accounts for less than 1% of U.S. energy supplies. Though it has the potential to account for as much as 8% by 2050. The beauty of geothermal energy is that it's "on" all the time, making it a perfect source of baseload energy. And its fuel source is endless. Until recently, scientists thought geothermal energy was available only in "hot spots" like Iceland, California and Nevada. But as I always like to say, technology marches on. And that's been the case for geothermal energy. | 
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