The flow of lava flowing from the small crater at Meradalir in Iceland where a volcanic eruption has been underway since August 3 has "
sharply decreased
", the Institute of Earth Sciences said on Tuesday August 16.
Streams of red lava are still flowing from the bubbling crater in the uninhabited valley of Meradalir in southwest Iceland, where a fissure split the ground nearly two weeks ago.
"High uncertainty"
Jets expelling molten magma several meters high, accompanied by a plume of smoke carrying volcanic gases are visible on live images from local media.
The flow is however estimated at around four cubic meters per second in recent days, compared to 11 a week ago and nearly 33 cubic meters per second in the first hours of the eruption.
"
Uncertainty is high in single measurements over such short periods
," warns the Institute of Earth Sciences, which initiated the assessment.
"
But overall the measurements (...) show that the eruption has clearly decreased
" in intensity, he adds.
The flows flow less far into the valley and the size of the fountains has been reduced.
From the now almost completely closed volcanic cone, only a lava channel flows.
Attendance records
"
It is impossible to say at this stage if the end of the eruption is near or if it is only a temporary trough of the eruption
", concludes the analysis of the specialists.
The lava discharge is at levels close to last year's eruption near Mount Fagradalsfjall, where the flow varied between four and eight cubic meters per second for nearly a month and a half before increasing suddenly.
Read alsoIceland: eruption in a volcanic fissure near Reykjavik
The site, very popular and less than 40 kilometers from Reykjavik, broke attendance records this weekend with a peak of nearly 6,700 visitors recorded on Sunday.
In total, more than 50,000 hikers have walked the trail leading to the volcano and its lava field - which now covers 126 hectares - according to figures from the Icelandic Tourist Board.