Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano bulging slightly
Global positioning satellite stations placed around the volcano have been moving outwards over the last 48 hours. It's not clear how big the bulge is as well as what it might mean for future eruptions.
Between 20 and 30 earthquakes have been picked up beneath the ice cap since Monday, at between one and 15 miles deep. This increased seismicity "suggests that new material is intruding from deep below Eyjafjallajökull and latest GPS-observations suggest inflation," reads a recent report.
The eruption plume reached eight miles high at 4:55 p.m. Wednesday, Iceland time. A Boeing 757 flying nearby observed a black plume at 421,000 feet up heading towards the southeast.
The villages of Sólheimaheiði, Hjörleifshöfði and Álftaver up to 45 miles away experienced ash and debris falls. People living on farms south of the volcano were troubled during the night by loud noises from the volcano, and there were reports that people heard them up to 125 miles away to the west and northwest.
There was less meltwater coming off of the Gígjökull glacier outlet into the Markarfljót river.
An Icelandic Coast Guard flight reported that the volcano's crater continues build up. The lava tongue flowing down the side of the crater is about 650 feet wide. The lava channels that join at the tongue are about 100 to 200 feet wide and getting wider every day.
By Elizabeth Weise
The volcano in Eyjafjallajökull glacier appears to be spewing as much ash as it did at the beginning of the eruption; a great plume of ash extended from the crater yesterday and last night. The phreatic eruption continues with significant force and explosive activity is increasing. The Civil Protection Department will discuss the situation today.
Ash fall in south Iceland. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.
The volcanic cloud reached a height of 10.5 kilometers at 7:30 pm yesterday; it extended six to seven kilometers into the air during the night. The chemical combination of the ash will be analyzed today, ruv.is reports.
Freysteinn Sigmundsson, a geophysicist at the University of Iceland Institute of Earth Science, said that although the volcanic ash has reached a similar height as during the early stages of the eruption, it doesn't appear to be as dense. He assumes the activity of the eruption will continue at the same level in the coming days.
The ash cloud is being carried either to the south or southeast and so ash caused disruption to flights in Ireland and the western British Isles during the night.
Aviation authorities in the UK announced last night that there was no ash in the country's airspace and so all airports there opened in the morning.
Icelands Katla Volcano New Seismic Activity 4/28/10, Eruption Imminent
Today, Iceland's Katla volcano had a significant earthquake.
Iceland's Katla Volcano
Today, Iceland's Katla volcano had a significant earthquake. Although no eruption has happened yet, this would be the normal course of events prior to an eruption. No official news story available at this time, but the seismograph data is available for public viewing here:
http://en.vedur.is/#tab=skjalftar
It is not known when Katla will erupt but it is commonly accepted, especially by the Icelandic population, that this is only the beginning of the saga that will be the eruption of this massive glacial volcano. Earthquakes in Katla's vicinity are the only real warning we have about when the eruption is getting close, and as we see seismic activity in the region increase, it will only mean one thing, that an eruption is imminent.
If you have been watching the eruptions at Eyjafjallajokull, you may be aware that this volcano is, historically, a precursor to large scale Katla eruptions. The president of Iceland spoke with the BBC about a week ago, expressing his concerns about Katla. He believes that it is not if Katla blows, but when. The history with this volcano and Eyjafjallajokull indicate that Katla could erupt anytime between now and a year or two from now.
Source--
(Gars O'Higgins Station penguins)
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(Twilight Saga commentary)
http://throughgoldeneyes.blogspot.com/
(Coming soon---Volcano Watch!)
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