Huge cracks appear on roads in Icelandic town at risk of volcanic eruption
For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails
Sign up to our free breaking news emails
Magma may have reached very high up in the Earth’s crust, according to Iceland’s meteorological office, which says people will have to “wait in suspense for the next few days” to see how events play out.
“While there is still magma flow into the corridor, and while our data and models show that, that probability is imminent, and we really just have to wait in suspense for the next few days to see what happens,” Kristín Jónsdóttir, head of department at the Icelandic Meteorological Office, said.
She said the decreasing earthquake activity over the last 24 hours could be a sign that magma has reached very high up in the earth’s crust, adding that the scenario is not unlike what was seen prior to a previous eruption in 2021.
The Met Office said magmatic gas has been detected at a borehole in Svartsengi, signalling an imminent eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano over the coming days, with the town of Grindavik most at risk.
“Hagafell is thought to be a prime location for an eruption,” the forecaster said.
An eruption is now feared by many experts to be a case of when, not if.
“I do think an eruption will take place, but the big question is when that might happen,” Dr Margaret Hartley, of the University of Manchester, told Live Science.
Magma 'very close' to surface, Met Office says
The magma intrusion continues to deepen and widen, indicating it has reached high up in the earth’s crust, according to Kristín Jónsdóttir, the head of the volcanic activity department at the Icelandic Met Office.
“While model calculations still indicate that magma flows into the intrusion, it must be considered probable that an eruption will occur,” the seismologist said, according to local news.
The greatest widening is in an area west of Hagafell, which is the most likely place for an eruption, according to the Met Office.
Pinned post: Officials reveal most likely location for volcanic eruption
The most likely site for volcanic eruption in Iceland is near the mountainous region of Hagafell, according to the Icelandic meteorological office.
Latest models based on GPS data and satellite imagery suggest the largest magma intrusion movements are occurring north of Grindavík, near Hagafell, the Met Office said.
“If magma manages to reach the surface, Hagafell is thought to be a prime location for an eruption,” it said, adding that seismicity related to the magma intrusion remains constant.
About 2,000 mini quakes have been recorded in the last 24 hours the largest of which occurred near Hagefell and had a magnitude of 3.0.
Most of the earthquake activity is still being recorded in an area north of Hagafel, the Met Office noted.
Pinned post: Thousands of quakes recorded in single day
Over 2,000 quakes have been recorded in Iceland with continued land deformation on Friday, according to the country’s meteorological office.
The most likely scenario, according to the Iceland Met Office volcanism head Kristín Jónsdóttir, is eruption beginning in the “next few days.”
Experts say the eruption site is likely NE of Grindavík where ground deformation is happening more acutely, but it is still not entirely sure when and where it may happen, according to the Met Office.
Video report: Iceland volcano eruption warning forces residents in Grindavik to evacuate
Residents of a fishing town in south-western Iceland have left their homes after fears of a volcanic eruption caused civil defence authorities to declare a state of emergency in the region. Find out more in this video report:
Seismic activity 'slightly less' than before midnight, officials say
While more than 300 earthquakes have been recorded since midnight, officials say this is still less activity than last night.
The biggest earthquake since midnight measured 2.8 in the mountainous region of Hagafell, north east of Grindavík, according to the Icelandic Met Office.
Magma is likely moving closer to the surface as less seismic activity may be a sign of less resistance in the earth’s crust, Ríkey Júlíusdóttir, a geologist at the Met Office, said.
“The magma is probably quite shallow, and maybe it doesn’t take much conflict for it to erupt,” seismologist Kristín Jónsdóttir said.
Iceland volcano eruption warning forces residents in Grindavik to evacuate
Iceland volcano eruption warning forces residents in Grindavik to evacuate
Residents of a fishing town in south-western Iceland have left their homes after fears of a volcanic eruption caused civil defence authorities to declare a state of emergency in the region. Police decided to evacuate Grindavik after recent seismic activity in the area moved south towards the town and monitoring indicated that a corridor of magma, or semi-molten rock, now extends under the community, Iceland’s meteorological office said. The town of 3,400 is on the Reykjanes Peninsula, about 30 miles south-west of the capital, Reykjavik.
It may be long time before residents can move back, officials say
It could be a long time before it is safe to move back into Grindavík due to damages to houses and pipes, Víðir Reynisson, director of the civil defense department, said yesterday.
“This plus uncertainty about earthquakes means that Grindvíkings have to prepare to live elsewhere in the coming months,” Mr Reynisson said.
A rescue worker told local news that at least about twenty houses in the town are badly damaged and need a lot of repairs.
More than 1,200 families in the town need to be given a shelter, Grindavík mayor Fannar Jónasson said, adding that “it will take days and weeks to resolve issues so that everyone can enjoy themselves.”
Is it safe to travel to Iceland? Your rights if you have a holiday booked
The town of Grindavík, just 10 miles south of Keflavik International Airport, has been evacuated as a precaution.
Read the full article here
Costs for housing measures will be significant, Iceland PM says
The government’s costs for new housing for Grindvíking residents will be significant, says Iceland prime minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir.
With 600 housing requests still outstanding, the prime minister told local news that the government would first “work with what is available,” but also needs to consider building new housing.
“There, we have also been looking at things that can possibly be done faster, such as modular houses that do meet all quality requirements, which could then be built relatively quickly to respond to this situation,” Ms Jakobsdóttir said.
“The authorities have been in conversation with the financial companies about going further, as these are completely unique circumstances,” she added.
Biggest volcanic eruptions in the last 10 years as Iceland town faces devastation
It comes as the country has been shaken by more than 880 small earthquakes, prompting fears that the tremors could disrupt the Fagradalsfjall volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula in the southwest of the country.
Read the full article here
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMic2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3Mvd29ybGQvZXVyb3BlL2ljZWxhbmQtdm9sY2Fuby1lcnVwdGlvbi1lYXJ0aHF1YWtlcy1ncmluZGF2aWstdHJhdmVsLWIyNDQ5ODkwLmh0bWzSAQA?oc=5
2023-11-19 08:58:03Z
2593683121
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar