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Iceland’s volcanic eruption could last for decades

Published 1 July 2024
– By Editorial Staff
Volcanic eruption near the town of Grindavik earlier this year.

Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula has seen five major eruptions since December alone. Now, researchers from Uppsala University and elsewhere predict that the eruptions could continue for decades.

Since 2021, the Reykjanes peninsula has experienced a series of volcanic eruptions, including five major eruptions in the last six months alone. The most recent eruptions have forced residents to leave their homes and led to the evacuation of visitors to the Blue Lagoon spa three times in two months.

An international team of scientists from the University of Oregon, Uppsala University, the University of Iceland, the Czech Academy of Sciences, and the University of California, San Diego, has been monitoring the volcanoes for the past three years. The results have been published in the journal Terra Nova.

Could be long-lasting

Iceland sits on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a tectonic plate boundary that separates North America from Eurasia. When these plates slide apart, volcanic eruptions can be triggered as molten rock from the Earth’s mantle rises to the surface. The Reykjanes Peninsula has been dormant for 800 years, but the current volcanic era could be as long as the previous one, which lasted for centuries.

Scientists know that eruptions on the peninsula are caused by plate movements, but the details of magma storage and plumbing are still unclear. There are eight volcanically active areas on the peninsula. Using geochemical and seismic data, the researchers investigated whether the magma from the 2021-2023 eruptions came from the same source as the recent eruptions to the west. They analyzed isotopes in lava samples to trace the origin of the magma.

The results showed that the magma probably came from the same storage zone under the peninsula. Imaging of the Earth’s interior, based on local earthquakes, suggests that a magma reservoir exists at a depth of 5.5 to 7.5 kilometers in the crust.

– But this reservoir is ultimately fed by the melting bedrock deeper in the mantle, which can cause eruptions lasting decades, with hundreds of square kilometers of magma emerging, says Ilya Bindeman, a volcanologist and professor of earth sciences at the University of Oregon, according to Phys.org.

“Nature is never regular”

Discussions are underway about drilling in Iceland’s volcanic areas to better understand the causes of eruptions. Because volcanic activity in Iceland is less explosive than elsewhere, scientists can get close to active fissures. However, it is difficult to predict how long the eruptions will continue.

– Nature is never regular, says Bindeman. We don’t know how long and how often it will continue for the next ten or even a hundred years. A pattern will emerge, but nature always has exceptions and irregularities.

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Iceland braces for possible new volcanic eruptions

Published 13 March 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Grindavík during one of the eruptions in January 2024.

Seismic activity on the Reykjanes Peninsula has increased in recent days, which is interpreted as an increased risk of a new volcanic eruption.

Iceland was hit by strong earthquakes in late 2023, which triggered a volcanic eruption. Since then, several eruptions have occurred, causing widespread evacuations, particularly in Grindavík and at the popular Blue Lagoon spa. The most recent eruption occurred in November, when both residents and tourists had to leave the area. Despite warnings from the authorities, some tourists went right up to the lava flows to photograph them.

Four small earthquakes

Four small earthquakes were recorded on Tuesday morning and the Icelandic Meteorological Office believes this could be a sign of an imminent eruption.

– The situation is that we are seeing clear signs of increased seismic activity, especially in the last week. Both at the magma intrusion site, but we are also seeing an increase in seismic activity both northwest and northeast of Grindavík. This has been happening over the past two to three days, Steinunn Helgadóttir, a natural disaster specialist at the Icelandic Meteorological Authority, told Icelandic state broadcaster RUV.

If a new eruption occurs, the warning time may be short. In previous eruptions, it took between 30 and 40 minutes from the first signs to the start of the eruption.

– We expect something similar for this eruption, she says.

Unusually cold in Iceland last year

Published 23 January 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Snæfellsnes in January 2024.

2024 was recorded as the coldest year in Iceland in the last 27 years, according to the country’s meteorological office. Temperatures were below average for most of the year.

The national average temperature in Iceland was 0.8°C below the average for the period 1991-2020 last year, Icelandic state broadcaster RUV reports. Winter temperatures were below the national average, and although spring was close to average, April was particularly cold with heavy precipitation and snow in the north-east until the end of the month.

Summer was also unusually cold, with temperatures below normal in all summer months except July. In the fall, November offered an unusual contrast: the first half was very warm, while the second half was significantly colder than average.

According to Veðurstofa Íslands, Iceland’s meteorological office, 2024 was the coldest year since 1998.

The highest temperature of the year, 27.5°C, was recorded at Egilsstaðir Airport in eastern Iceland on July 14. The lowest temperature of the year, -28.6°C, was recorded at Svartárkot in northern Iceland on December 31.

Young Icelanders want to ban whaling

Published 13 January 2025
– By Editorial Staff
The Icelandic whaling vessel Hvalur 9 RE-399.

More than half of Iceland’s 18-29 year olds are in favor of banning whaling altogether – while older generations are much more hesitant about a ban.

In December, Iceland’s outgoing prime minister, Bjarni Benediktsson, gave the go-ahead for whaling in the country for the next five years. A license to hunt herring whales was also granted last summer, but as the permit came too late in the season, no whaling took place in Iceland this year.

Almost half of Icelanders are dissatisfied with the recently granted whaling license, according to a survey conducted by Maskína in December. At the same time, a third say they are satisfied, Icelandic state broadcaster RUV reports.

Of men, 45% support whaling, while only 23% of women back the decision. At the same time, the survey shows that there is significant opposition to a total ban on whaling, with a majority of Sjálfststæðisflokkurinn (Independence Party) voters, for example, opposing a legal ban.

More than half of Icelandic women support a ban on whaling. The same is true for more than half of 18-29 year olds, while around 50% of people in the 30-39 age group are also in favor of a ban.

A majority of people in the 50-59 and 60+ age groups are against a ban on whale hunting.

More volcanic eruptions in Iceland as tourists defy warnings

Published 22 November 2024
– By Editorial Staff

During the night leading into Thursday, Iceland experienced yet another volcanic eruption. The lava flow reached a parking lot in an evacuated tourist area, and despite barriers, tourists made their way to the edge of the lava to take photos.

A year ago, the Reykjanes Peninsula was hit by an earthquake that triggered a volcanic eruption. Since then, several eruptions have occurred, resulting in widespread evacuations, especially from the town of Grindavík and the popular Blue Lagoon spa. Although no people have been injured, the material damage caused by the eruptions so far amounts to around €538 million.

A new eruption has now occurred in the area, the seventh this year. Again, tourists from the Blue Lagoon and the few remaining residents of Grindavík were evacuated in an operation described as successful. The lava flow is said to have crossed a road near the town, affecting both electricity and hot water supplies.

Going to the edge of the lava

The lava flow continued towards the Blue Lagoon and eventually reached the parking lot in the area. According to the Icelandic state broadcaster RUV, the lava also reached a service building adjacent to the parking lot.

Although the area was cordoned off and off-limits, it was reported yesterday that tourists had entered to see the lava. They are said to have walked close to the lava edge and are described as unaware of the risks they were exposing themselves to.

Despite cordon signs, warnings from civil defense and the fact that lava is molten, liquid, superheated rock, a number of people have, remarkably, walked right up to the edge”, writes RUV.

Rescuers were immediately alerted and evacuated the tourists from the area without any injuries.

Experts express surprise at the outbreak, describing it as “unlikely” that another one would occur now. At the same time, some scientists believe that this could be the beginning of a new volcanic period on the peninsula, which could potentially last for decades.

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