03/20/2021 10:37 AM
Clarín.com
International
Updated 03/20/2021 10:37 AM
A small volcanic eruption continued this Saturday 20 in Iceland about 40 kilometers from the capital,
Reykjavik
, causing a
river of lava and incandescent red magma
for the first time in that sector of the country in about 800 years.
Following intense three-week seismic activity
and an eruption alert, a torrent of lava erupted at 8:45 p.m. Friday from a crack in the ground at
Geldingadalur
, near Fagradalsfjall mountain, lighting up the night with a red cloud.
In spectacular video footage recorded Saturday by a Coast Guard helicopter,
lava was seen flowing, as well as blue gas vents
at the site of the eruption.
A volcano erupted in Iceland 40 kilometers from the capital Reykjavik, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said, when a red cloud lit up the night sky and a no-fly zone was established in the area.
(Photo by Icelandic Coast Guard / AFP)
"It is considered that the eruption is small and that the fissure measures about 500 to 1000 meters long. The lava covers less than one km2 in size," said in a statement the Meteorological Service (IMO), which monitors seismic activity.
The Krysuvik volcanic system, which does not have a main crater, is located south of Fagradalsfjall Mountain, on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland.
The site of the eruption is about 5 km inland.
The police and the coast guard were sent to the place but the population has been advised not to approach.
Iceland's Keflavik International Airport and the small fishing port of Grindavik are just a few kilometers away, but the area is uninhabited and the eruption is not expected to pose a danger.
Coast Guard personnel inspect the flowing lava from the erupting Fagradalsfjall volcano, about 40 km west of the Icelandic capital Reykjavik, on March 20, 2021. (Photo by Icelandic Coast Guard / AFP)
At the moment, the authorities did not report that ash has fallen, but fragments of tephra (solidified magma) and gas emissions could occur.
Police advise residents east of the volcano to
close their windows and stay home due to the risk of gas contamination
.
For the moment, traffic was able to continue at Keflavik airport.
Gas emissions from volcanoes, especially sulfur dioxide, can be high in the vicinity of an eruption and pose a health hazard, even being fatal.
At a distance, pollution can exceed acceptable limits, depending on the wind.
The gas "can cause problems and have harmful effects on health," warned the Icelandic Environment Agency.
The volcanic eruptions in the region are effusive, that is, most of the lava flows towards the ground, unlike the explosive ones that throw clouds of ash towards the sky.
The Krysuvik volcanic system has been dormant for 900 years, according to the Met Office, and the last eruption on the Reykjanes Peninsula dates back almost 800 years, to 1240.
The area has been under increased surveillance for weeks as a 5.7 magnitude earthquake struck near Mount Keilir outside Reykjavik on 24 February.
This earthquake was followed by an unusual number of less strong tremors - more than 50,000, the most since digital records began in 1991.
A volcano erupted in Iceland on March 20, 2021. On Friday, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the capital Reykjavik, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said, when a red cloud lit up the night sky and established a no-fly zone in the area.
(Photo by Icelandic Coast Guard / AFP)
Since then, seismic activity has shifted several kilometers to the southwest, centering around Fagradalsfjall Mountain, where magma has been detected just one kilometer below the earth's surface in recent days.
Iceland has 32 volcanoes currently considered active
, the highest number in Europe.
The country has registered an eruption every five years on average.
This large island near the Arctic Circle straddles the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a fissure in the ocean floor that separates the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates.
The displacement of these plates is partly responsible for the intense volcanic activity in Iceland.
The most recent eruption occurred in Holuhraun (started in August 2014 and ended in February 2015), in the Bardarbunga volcanic system, in an uninhabited area in the center of the island.
This eruption did not cause major problems, beyond those caused to the nearest towns.
But in 2010, an eruption at the Eyjafjallajokull volcano spewed huge clouds of smoke and ash into the atmosphere, disrupting air traffic for more than a week, with the cancellation of more than 100,000 flights worldwide that left about 10 million. of passengers blocked for days.
AFP
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