Otherworldly cave in Vatnajökull glacier

In the largest national park in Europe, the Icelandic Vatnajökull, there is a glacier, inside of which a stunningly beautiful cave is hidden. Photographer Einar Sigurdsson Runar captured the breathtaking scenery inside the cave, which once again proves that nature is perfect.

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1. Vatnajökull National Park, with an area of 12 thousand square kilometers, occupies 12 percent of the territory of Iceland. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

2. On the territory of Vatnajokull National Park is the largest glacier in Europe - Vatnajokull. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

3. Water flows inside the Vatnaekul glacier. Do you know how ice caves form? This is due to melted glacial waters that flow down and destroy the lower layers of ice. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

4. The sun's rays penetrate inside the glacier, so it is warmer inside the cave than outside. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

5. According to the photographer who took these impressive photos, you can even get a little warm in the rays of the sun penetrating the ice cave. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

6. Stunning waterfalls are hidden in the ice cave. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

7. The 45-year-old photographer said that the temperature range in the cave ranges from -12 to +5 degrees Celsius. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

8. Unfortunately, due to climate change, the arch of this beautiful cave has become thinner by as much as 8 meters this year, and its side walls by 30-40 meters. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

9. The rays of the sun penetrate the cave through the thick walls of ice, as a result of which a “golden” glow appears on them. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

10. The largest icicle that was found in the ice cave was 1.5 meters long. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

11. Otherworldly cave in the Vatnajokull glacier. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

12. The photographer built a small fire inside the cave to keep warm. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

13. An interesting fact: visiting the Vatnajökull glacier by tourists was almost impossible until motorized sleds were invented for the expedition to Grimsvotn in 1947, and then in 1951 the French-Icelandic expedition successfully used caterpillar all-terrain vehicles called "snow cats". (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).

14. Now, snow cats are used every spring by specialists from the Icelandic Association of Glaciology [the science of natural ice] to study ice cover and glacier thickness. (Photo: Einar Runar Sigurdsson/Rex Features).