Huge cracks appear on roads in Icelandic town at risk of volcanic eruption
A volcano close to erupting in Iceland could explode like a “can of fizzy drink,” an expert has said.
Iceland’s Met Office has said magmatic gas has been detected at a borehole in Svartsengi, signalling an imminent eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano over the coming days, with the town of Grindavik most at risk.
Magma has been building underneath Iceland and Margaret Hartley, a senior lecturer in Earth sciences at the University of Manchester, said an eruption was a case of when, not if.
“I do think an eruption will take place, but the big question is when that might happen,” she told Live Science.
An eruption would take place when an open fracture connecting the magma dike to the Earth’s surface opens up.
“The most likely way to create this fracture is that a pressure build-up of gas bubbles in the dike will force magma towards the surface, breaking the crust apart,” she said.
“The process is a bit like shaking up a can of fizzy drink — as soon as a crack opens in the top of the can, the drink escapes with lots of frothing.”
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Could eruption disrupt air travel in Europe?
Iceland’s meteorological office has warned that the high likelihood of volcanic eruption still continues, likely to start “anytime in the next few days”
Accuweather Global Weather Center warned on Monday the potential for air travel getting affected over the coming weeks.
Ash from volcanic eruptions poses a risk to jet engines and can be a threat to planes, experts warn.
For instance, when Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano erupted in 2010, giant plumes of volcanic ash carried across Europe led to the disruption of over 100,000 flights over several weeks.
This affected about 7 million passengers, causing a loss of $4.7 billion to the global economy, Forbes reported.
Until now the situation has not affected air transport to or from Iceland and it remains unclear to what extent imminent eruption in the “coming days” could affect air travel in the country as well as the continent.
“While the possibility of air traffic disturbance cannot be entirely ruled out, scientists consider it an unlikely scenario. The potential disruption to flight traffic would depend on factors such as the location and size of the eruption,” Iceland’s official tourist website noted.
“We are in close contact with Icelandic authorities and are monitoring the situation closely. The situation has no effect on flights and we will keep passengers informed if there are any changes,” Iceland Air says on its website.
Vishwam Sankaran18 November 2023 04:10
Officials reveal most likely location for volcanic eruption
The most likely site for volcanic eruption in Iceland is near the mountainous region of Hagafell, according to the Icelandic meteorological office.
Latest models based on GPS data and satellite imagery suggest the largest magma intrusion movements are occurring north of Grindavík, near Hagafell, the Met Office said.
“If magma manages to reach the surface, Hagafell is thought to be a prime location for an eruption,” it said, adding that seismicity related to the magma intrusion remains constant.
About 2,000 mini quakes have been recorded in the last 24 hours the largest of which occurred near Hagefell and had a magnitude of 3.0.
Most of the earthquake activity is still being recorded in an area north of Hagafel, the Met Office noted.
Vishwam Sankaran18 November 2023 03:40
Thousands of quakes recorded in single day
Over 2,000 quakes have been recorded in Iceland with continued land deformation on Friday, according to the country’s meteorological office.
The most likely scenario, according to the Iceland Met Office volcanism head Kristín Jónsdóttir, is eruption beginning in the “next few days.”
Experts say the eruption site is likely NE of Grindavík where ground deformation is happening more acutely, but it is still not entirely sure when and where it may happen, according to the Met Office.
Vishwam Sankaran18 November 2023 03:12
Mapped: Iceland earthquake locations revealed as volcano eruption alert issued
Iceland is experiencing a seismic swarm as 2800 earthquakes have hit the country in just 48 hours prompting fears of a volcanic eruption.
Most tremours have been felt in the Reykjanes peninsula in the southwest of the country where small earthquakes have been felt every day for more than two weeks due to a build-up of volcanic magma three miles underground.
Matt Mathers18 November 2023 02:30
Iceland earthquakes: Are flights still running amid fears of volcano eruption?
Despite fears of an impending volcanic eruption, flights from the UK to Keflavik international airport 10 miles north of the eruption site are going ahead as usual.
Simon Calder and Lydia Patrick report:
Matt Mathers18 November 2023 00:30
‘It’s like a dystopian movie’: Iceland residents describe ‘apocalyptic’ scenes as they flee volcano threat
Residents from a small Icelandic town under threat from a volcanic eruption have described their ‘apocalyptic’ existence as they fear for their future.
Last Friday, thousands of Grindavik residents were ordered to leave as the town was rocked by hundreds of earthquakes. The small fishing town is 34 miles from Reykjavík and is home to the famous tourist attraction the Blue Lagoon.
Matt Mathers17 November 2023 22:30
Watch – Thousands evacuated as fears grow of volcano eruption in Iceland
Thousands evacuated as fears grow of volcano eruption in Iceland
Lydia Patrick17 November 2023 20:30
Iceland volcano could erupt like a ‘can of fizzy drink’
Matt Mathers17 November 2023 20:29
Despite repetitive quakes, Grindavik’s telecommunications are still in tact, say communications companies.
Míla, Iceland’s largest telecommunications company, told RUV that radio signals are currently undamaged.
Daði Sigurðarson, Míla’s technical director told the state broadcaster: “All the telecommunications companies are cooperating. There is extremely good cooperation going on in all operations and it has been for the past week.”
Local residents wait in their cars to get access to their homes in the fishing town of Grindavik, which was evacuated due to volcanic activity, in Iceland
(REUTERS)
Lydia Patrick17 November 2023 19:30
Biggest volcanic eruptions in the last 10 years as Iceland town faces devastation
It comes as the country has been shaken by more than 880 small earthquakes, prompting fears that the tremors could disrupt the Fagradalsfjall volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula in the southwest of the country.
Lydia Patrick17 November 2023 18:30