REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — A volcano in southwest Iceland started erupting Wednesday, the nation’s meteorological authorities stated — simply eight months after its final eruption formally ended.
The Icelandic Meteorological Workplace urged individuals to not go close to the Fagradalsfjall volcano, which is situated some 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of the capital, Reykjavik.
The eruption in an uninhabited valley just isn't removed from Keflavik Airport, Iceland’s worldwide air site visitors hub. The airport remained open and no flights have been disrupted.
A reside video feed from the location confirmed magma spewing from a slim fissure about 100 to 200 meters (109 to 218 yards) lengthy over a discipline of lava from final yr’s eruption, the primary on the Reykjanes Peninsula in virtually 800 years.
Scientists had anticipated an eruption someplace on the peninsula after a collection of earthquakes over the previous week indicated volcanic exercise near the crust.
Volcanologist Magnus Tumi Gudmundsson instructed The Related Press that the eruption gave the impression to be small.
“However we don’t know the place within the course of issues are at,” he stated as he boarded a helicopter for a primary look.
The 2021 eruption in the identical space produced spectacular lava flows for a number of months. Lots of of hundreds individuals flocked to see the spectacular sight.
Iceland, situated above a volcanic hotspot within the North Atlantic, averages an eruption each 4 to 5 years.
Essentially the most disruptive in current occasions was the 2010 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which despatched clouds of ash and dirt into the ambiance, interrupting air journey for days between Europe and North America due to issues the ash might harm jet engines. Greater than 100,000 flights have been grounded, stranding tens of millions of passengers.
Shares in Iceland’s flagship airline, Icelandair, rose 6% when information of the eruption broke Wednesday. Traders and residents alike had been spooked by the potential of a way more disruptive eruption in a populated space of the peninsula.
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