A third volcanic fissure opened in Iceland overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
It is on the site of the eruption that has been going on for nearly three weeks about forty kilometers from Reykjavik, the capital, announces the Icelandic meteorological office.
The eruption started on March 19 with a first continuously spewing lava fault in the small valley of Geldingadalir, located near Mount Fagradalsfjall at the southwestern tip of Iceland.
On Monday, a new fault consisting of two volcanic fissures opened about 700 meters from this first focus, creating a long stream of lava flowing towards another small neighboring valley.
It is therefore now a third source of lava that has been added to the site of the eruption, which has already attracted tens of thousands of curious people taking advantage of the site's relative ease of access.
Yet another crack started erupting around midnight last night.
Located inbetween previous cracks.
Lava can be seen flowing into #Geldingadalir from the new fissure NE of the craters in Geldingadalir.
#eruption #Reykjanes
- Icelandic Meteorological Office - IMO (@Vedurstofan) April 7, 2021
150 meters long and about one meter deep, this new fault is about half a kilometer from the craters of the first eruption.
Around midnight (2 hours in Paris), a light point suddenly lit the hill almost halfway between the first two eruptive sites, letting out small spurts of lava and with them a weak plume of smoke, according to images broadcast by public television RÚV.
The rash could last for years
The orange flow has rolled down the slope in the form of a river and is added to the lava field already formed by the active source since March 19.
This field now covers more than 33 hectares.
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VIDEO.
Fagradalsfjall eruption: spectacular images of a drone flying over lava
The site, which was closed to the public on Monday due to the second flaw, reopened this Wednesday morning.
Icelandic vulcanologists, who initially expected an eruption of a few days, now favor a long-term scenario, without being able to comment on a longevity in weeks, months, or even years.