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OVERVIEW: Helicopter footage shows scorching lava flow. Photo: Icelandic Meteorological Office
The volcanic eruption in Iceland is underway: lava flow from the deep colors the sky over Reykjanes west of the capital Reykjavik.
– The Norwegian Meteorological Institute has confirmed the eruption, says geologist Børge Johannes Wigum (58) to VG.
The former NTNU professor follows the evening’s drama from Reykjavik.
The eruption began late Friday night and is located about 40 kilometers southwest of the capital Reykjavik. All flights to and from Keflavik have been canceled, Reuters reports according to NTB.
Wigum claims that a Coast Guard helicopter is on the way to verify what is happening, after a webcam captured the volcanic activity.
Eruption: A reddish skin in the sky over Fagradalsfjall mountain shows the start of the volcanic eruption in Iceland on Friday night.
– The eruption has not been recorded in earthquake measurements. It was a huge surprise to everyone, including geologists and geophysicists, says Wigum.
The Icelandic Meteorological Institute claims an eruption has started at Fagradalsfjall, in the flat, desert landscape between Keflavik airport and the capital Reykjavik.
The main roads in the area are closed and people are encouraged to remain calm, but there is no immediate risk of the eruption posing a danger, says the Icelandic Meteorological Institute.
The outbreak was reported at 9.40pm on Friday night.
That something was about to happen was obvious. Tens of thousands of small and large earthquakes have shaken Reykjavik in recent weeks.
– So many earthquakes are very unusual. The last time there was this much activity was in the 1960s, the Norwegian geologist said when VG spoke with him on March 4.
GEOLOGIST: Børge Johannes Wigum during the volcanic eruption at Holuhraun in Iceland in 2014. Photo: Private
The Eurasian and North American continental plates are located on the Reykjanes Peninsula.
– The plates that carry the continents separate and rub at the same time. Now it appears that the magma is about to penetrate to the surface in the fracture zone, Wigum said.
The landscape rises
Magma is molten rock 6-7 kilometers below the earth’s crust in Reykjanes. Magma is light and under pressure and can penetrate heavier rocks. The magma that reaches the surface is called lava.
SOURCES OF HEAT: There is smoke from hot springs and sulfur pools at Seltún in Reykjanes. Photo: Sven Arne Buggeland
There have been no volcanic eruptions in Reykjanes since the time of Snorre Sturlasson around the year 1240.
Single stage
Børge Johannes Wigum says that the fissure through which the lava flows can be several kilometers long and perhaps around ten meters wide.
– An eruption will be relatively quiet, but we can expect lava columns overhead. When lava falls, it will flow like glowing rivers with a temperature of 1100-1200 degrees, says the Norwegian geologist based in Iceland.
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I wake up all night
– The eruption did not occur unexpectedly, says Icelandic professor of geology at the University of Bergen, Haflidi Haflidason to VG.
You will stay up all night to keep up with events.
Haflidason lives in Bergen, but has spent a lot of time in Iceland for several years.
– It has been almost 800 years since the last time something similar happened, so this is spectacular. We still know little about the extension, but it will be exciting to see development, says Haflidason.
