Another volcano erupts in Iceland

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A volcano in southwest Iceland has erupted, triggering a series of earthquakes. Shortly after the eruption lava began spewing out of a newly created 1.2-kilometer-long fissure in the ground posing a direct threat to the town of Grindavik and the nearby Blue Lagoon spa.

Shortly after the sirens sounded most of the residents of the small town of Grindavik decided to leave. Although there are protective barriers around the town they were breached by a newly opened eruptive fissure in the ground.

Residents of the town of Grindavik have been asked to temporarily leave the town because it is in a danger zone. According to the regional police commissioner, several families have decided to stay in the town despite the warning due to concerns that lava flows could enter the populated area.

In the northern part of Grindavik a hot water pipe burst shortly after the tremors. Fortunately volcanic activity had subsided significantly by Tuesday. Most residents of the town still remember the eruption in 2023 which forced the mass evacuation of most of the four thousand inhabitants. Since then the volcano has erupted several more times.

The total length of magma beneath the series of craters during Monday's eruption stretched to eleven kilometers making the magma corridor three kilometers further than during the 2023 eruption. Meteorologists warn that due to the current wind direction gas pollution from the eruption will advance towards the capital.

The Reykjanes Peninsula last had a period of volcanic activity eight hundred years ago, and eruptions have lasted for decades. Iceland has 33 active volcanic systems and lies above the Mid-Atlantic Ridge which forms the boundary between the two largest tectonic plates on the planet.

Source:BBC