VOLCANO MADNESS: [Geology2] Eyjafjallajokull update 04/23/2012

Friday, April 23, 2010

[Geology2] Eyjafjallajokull update 04/23/2012

Icelandic volcano continues to ease

Posted on22 April 2010.

eyjafjall3-little It was another 'gentle' night at the volcano under Eyjafjallajokull in South Iceland, according to nearby emergency services. A small increase in the flow of the Markarfljott river at around 01.00 brought some ice down from the glacier, but the river returned to normal by this morning.

Meteorologists are predicting that ash fall today will mostly stay on the glacier and in the area to the west of it.

Scientists flew over the volcano again yesterday and confirmed that the eruption appeared to have calmed down since the day before. Only one of the three craters is still active and there is no flowing lava.

Ash fall in the coming days is expected to swing to the north and nortwest side of the glacier. It is possible that a small amount of ash will reach Reykjavik on Friday and Saturday; but health officials are not expecting any danger.

In celebration of the official first day of summer, an open house and party is being held for the public at the Heimaland guesthouse and tourist centre – as happens every year. The danger to Heimaland is considered minimal, but Red Cross volunteers are still on hand for the party between 11.00 and 17.00, all are welcome.

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Icelandic volcano ash not expected to reach USA, but expect some nice sunsets

05:26 PM

The sky glows a stunning red following a sunset in Asheville, N.C., in 1984. Scientists say the only effect in the USA from the Iceland volcano will be some dramatic sunsets later this week due to the ash in the atmosphere.

NOAA Photo Library

The Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull continues to erupt and was still spewing ash and debris as of Tuesday afternoon. Weather patterns continued to blow the ash towards the United Kingdom, that country's Meteorological Office reports.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), some of the ash may make it to the far eastern edge of Canada.

"We checked with them this morning and we find they've extended their advisory into far eastern Canada, slightly further to the west," says Tony Hall, director of NOAA's Alaska Volcanic Ash Advisory Center. However, most of the ash is falling on the ground and in the ocean near Iceland.

The Volcanic Ash Advisory Center in Montreal has not seen any signs of ash in its airspace via satellite, Hall says. "It's an advisory, not a warning," he notes. That means it's a possibility, not a certainty.

However, none of the ash is expected to reach the USA. "There may be some nicer sunsets over North America this week," but that's pretty much the only effect, says Stan Benjamin, director of NOAA's Forecast Branch for Global Systems Division.

Eyjafjallajökull (ay-yah-FYAH-lah-yer-kuhl) began erupting March 20, with a second, more larger eruption beginning April 14.

But here in the USA, NOAA, the National Weather Service, NASA, the FAA and everyone else is keeping watch. "The volcano in Iceland is still erupting, so we're very closely monitoring this situation. All these volcanoes each other their own personality and behavior" and it's not possible to predict what they'll do, Hall says.

The USA has "quite a bit of experience with (volcanic eruptions), in Alaska and Hawaii, especially Alaska," says Hall. "We frequently help the airline industry out in these events."

For example, Anchorage is the third-largest airport in the nation for cargo planes. During the most recent eruption of Alaska's Mt. Redoubt, in 2009, "the volcano was going on and off for about three months," says Gary Hufford of NOAA's National Weather Service.

It's not expected that the Eyjafjallajökull eruption will have any effect on worldwide climate, reports Chet Koblinsky, director of NOAA's Climate Program Office. It's simply not putting out enough ash and sulfur dioxide to cause cooling.

By Elizabeth Weise

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