Evacuaties na uitbarsting IJslandse vulkaan onder gletsjer

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Sunday 21st March 2010
Eyjafjoll volcano, Iceland
An eruption began under the Eyjafjallajökull glacier on 21st March 2010. Locals reported lava fountaining and a lava flow from the glacier. Residents were evacuated. The eruption was limited to an area with little ice, so the threat of a flood was reduced. All flights to and from Iceland have been cancelled because of the eruption. There is a 120 mile radius no fly zone around the volcano.

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Iceland Eruption Stable
Geophysicist Freymódur Sigmundsson says that the volcanic activity seemed stable the three hours he watched the eruption from a circling airplane this morning. He says it is possible that the rift will grow longer as time passes by. According to mbl.is Sigmundsson said the eruption activity was impressive.

Lava is flowing in two directions, to the east and the main stream to the west. Because of heat turbulence it was impossible to fly over the western stream. “The direction of the row of craters is a bit unusual, going from north to south. Most of the rifts go from east to west.”

Sigmundsson said that the rift is very close to the edge of both Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull. “The eruption now reduces the pressure of an eruption in Eyjafjallajökull. We think this eruption is connected to the earthquake activity that we have seen in recent weeks. It is possible that the eruption moves south or north. If it goes south it could go under the glacier, but we have no indication of that.”

At the moment it seems unlikely that the eruption will lead to a major flood as would happen when an eruption starts under a glacier.

The weather in the area is not the most favorable to tourists who might want to see the eruption. Because of rain visibility is limited. The forecast is not good until Wednesday.

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Great Interest in Eruption says Hotel Owner
Fridrik Pálsson, owner of luxury Hotel Rangá close to the eruption in Fimmvörduháls, says that his phone has not stopped since the eruption started. “I was at a convention in Hólmavík on the West fjords last night when a staff member at the hotel called me to tell me that an eruption had started. This was just before midnight and I jumped into my car and drove all night to come to the hotel as soon as possible.”



The Hótel Rangá is close to Hvolsvöllur where the rescue center is located. All guests were always safe. They were excited to be in the place at the moment of outbreak. At the moment the only sign of the eruption they see is the thick smoke.

“People are calling us from near and far. Many scientists want to know how close they can get to the area, if they can rent planes or helicopters, etc.”

Pálsson says that even though the road to the area is closed, police allow hotel guests to pass through. But what about vacancies at the hotel, if people want to get close to the scene?

“We have been packed in recent weeks, but for some odd coincidence we have space this week. But if the number of phone calls I receive are any indication those will be filled soon” Pálsson says.

"One last question. What was the convention in Hólmavík that you had to leave so abruptly about?"

"On humor. And unlike most such scholarly work on wit, it was quite entertaining," Pálsson says.

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Another South Iceland Volcano Might Start to Erupt
Geophysicist Páll Einarsson said all known eruptions in Eyjafjallajökull have been in connection with eruptions in the neighboring volcano Katla underneath the Mýrdalsjökull icecap. Now that Eyjafjallajökull has started to erupt, Katla might follow.


^{The volcano Katla hides underneath the Mýrdalsjökull icecap. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.}

Eyjafjallajökull has erupted three times since the settlement of Iceland in the 9th century AD, in 920, 1612 and 1821. All three eruptions were rather small but caused flooding. However, there is a short distance to Katla, Einarsson said, which is a powerful and vicious volcano, ruv.is reports.

“Katla is of a completely different kind […] but they seem to be connected, because all known eruptions in Eyjafjallajökull were related to Katla eruptions and therefore it seems that they might a prelude to eruptions in Katla,” Einarsson said.

“Eyjafjallajökull might to a certain extent work as a detonator for a dynamite explosion,” the geophysicist added. “If it goes off it is like Katla can’t resist it and also wants to join in. Those eruptions can be big and cause extensive damage.”

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(Eyjafjallajökull)

Iceland

63.63 N, 19.62 W
summit elevation 1666 m
stratovolcano

Eyjafjöll volcano is located in southern Iceland under Eyjafjallajökull icecap. The southern end of the volcano was once part of the Atlantic coastline. The sea level has retreated some 5 km, leaving behind sheer cliffs with and many waterfalls such as Skógafoss.

Eyjafjoll volcano contains a 2.5 km wide caldera.

Eyjafjöll has been much less active than neighboring volcanoes. Since 1600's there have only been three eruptions at Eyjafjoll, while nearby Katla had 20 eruptions.

2010 Eruption
An earthquake swarm began under Eyjafjoll volcano in January 2010. There was a 40 mm inflation of the volcano. At the beginning of March 2010 over 3000 earthquakes were measured in a 24 hour period, with a maximum at magnitude 3.1.
An eruption began near the Eyjafjallajökull glacier on 21st March 2010. Locals reported lava fountaining and a lava flow from the glacier. Residents were evacuated. The eruption was limited to an area with little ice, so the threat of a flood was reduced.

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Op maandag 22 maart 2010 11:13 schreef Frutsel het volgende:
Dat IceSave gedoe wordt de IJslanders nu letterlijk heet onder de voeten

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Op maandag 22 maart 2010 11:19 schreef Frutsel het volgende:

Volcano Eruption in Eyjafjallajökull Iceland (HD)

Katla heeft een caldera van 10km... klinkt als een supervulkaan

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“Eyjafjallajökull might to a certain extent work as a detonator for a dynamite explosion,” the geophysicist added. “If it goes off it is like Katla can’t resist it and also wants to join in. Those eruptions can be big and cause extensive damage.”

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Op maandag 22 maart 2010 14:46 schreef rubbereend het volgende:
Een supervulkaan heeft er toch ook mee te maken hoeveel magma er onder de grond zit?

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De term supervulkaan wordt gebruikt voor vulkanen die in staat worden geacht supererupties voort te brengen, waarbij meer dan 1000 km³ tefra wordt uitgeworpen (VEI=8). Het zijn de zeldzaamste en tegelijk meest verwoestende vulkanische uitbarstingen. De gevolgen zijn mondiaal en catastrofaal: door het stof in de hogere luchtlagen kan de temperatuur op aarde met meerdere graden dalen. Volgens sommige geleerden kan een dergelijke uitbarsting zelfs een nieuwe ijstijd uitlokken.

Het woord werd voor het eerst geopperd in 2000 door de makers van het BBC-programma Horizon om onderscheid te maken met 'gewone' vulkanen. Vulkanologen hanteren verschillende definities voor de term, maar gebruiken het woord inmiddels wel in wetenschappelijke artikelen. De hoeveelheid ejecta wordt als maatstaf genomen, de tijdsduur van de eruptie kan variëren van enkele dagen tot vele jaren.

De vulkaan Toba was de op een na laatste die van zich heeft laten horen. Het Tobameer op Sumatra van 100 km lang en 30 km breed is de krater (caldera) van een uitbarsting 74.000 jaar geleden waarbij bijna 3000 km³ gesteente de lucht in werd geworpen, vergelijkbaar met een gigaton TNT. Volgens de Toba-catastrofetheorie heeft deze gebeurtenis de evolutie van het menselijk ras beslissend beïnvloed. De laatste was de Taupo op het Nieuw-Zeelandse Noordereiland met een uitstoot van 1170 km³, die in 181 na Chr. nog een uitbarsting kende van VEI=7.

Er zouden op Aarde zo'n veertig supervulkanen zijn. Op het Noord-Amerikaanse continent getuigt de Yellowstonecaldera nog van een superuitbarsting 640.000 jaar geleden. Andere supervulkanen zijn te vinden in Nieuw-Zeeland, Zuid-Amerika en de caldera Laacher See in west Duitsland en de caldera Campi Flegrei bij Napels. Maar misschien is de vulkaan onder het Griekse eiland Santorini ook in staat tot superuitbarstingen. De vulkaan La Garita Caldera is met een uitbarsting van meer dan 5000 km³ magma onbetwist de grootste.

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Op maandag 22 maart 2010 11:27 schreef kahaarin het volgende:

[..]

Hmm, voor zover ik het heb begrepen wordt het predicaat supervulkaan gebruikt voor vulkanen die een allesverwoestend karakter hebben en niet gebaseerd op grootte. Was het niet zo dat een hele grote vulkaan die niet zoveel schade doet minder gevaarlijk kan zijn dan een relatief veel kleinere die een heel explosief karakter heeft?

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Op dinsdag 23 maart 2010 10:23 schreef Netsplitter het volgende:

[..]

Yellowstone.

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Op woensdag 24 maart 2010 15:26 schreef Frutsel het volgende:
@Ka

vooralsnog niets nieuws, behalve het nieuws wat jij net doorgaf
Stilte voor de storm of het loopt met een sisser af net als met Mayon

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Op donderdag 25 maart 2010 18:32 schreef Frutsel het volgende:
[ afbeelding ]
[..]

Aan het nieuwsbericht (tijd) te zien is dit dan een nieuwe uitbarsting op IJsland?

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Two-Hundred Meter High Lava Fall in South Iceland
Volcanologist Haraldur Sigurdsson witnessed the creation of a 200-meter-high lava fall at the scene of the Fimmvörduháls volcanic eruption today, when lava flowed down the Hrunagil canyon. There were massive steam explosions when the lava hit the snow.

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New Iceland Mountain Needs a Name
A new mountain is rising on Fimmvörduháls where the current volcanic eruption is taking place and the mountain requires a name. Fimmvördufjall (“Five Cairn Mountain”) after the mountain pass is one suggestion.



The new mountain rises behind the crater. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.

The mountain could also be named after Hrunagil canyon, into which the lava from the crater flows (the literal translation of Hrunagil is something like “Collapsing Canyon”), as toponymist Svavar Sigmundsson told Morgunbladid.

It used to be the role of the Icelandic Toponymy Committee to find names for new natural phenomena, such as Surtsey island, which was created in an underwater eruption in 1963, and Eldfell, the mountain which rose from the ashes of the 1973 Westman Islands eruption.

Now members of the public are often allowed to make suggestions. Then the National Land Survey of Iceland and toponymists review the suggestions and make sure they hold up to demands on grammar and other linguistic conditions so that they can be registered and placed on maps.

That arrangement was used when a new mud-spurting hot spring that was created after the 2008 south Iceland earthquake had to be named.

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Toxic Fumes at Source of Iceland Eruption
The search and rescue association Landsbjörg (ICE-SAR) has issued a warning that dangerous toxic fumes are in the air in the immediate surroundings of the volcanic crater on Fimmvörduháls, which can cause permanent damages to the lungs if inhaled.



^{Photo by Páll Stefánsson.}

The chemicals being released into the atmosphere are sulfur, fluorine, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, which is odorless and deadly, ruv.is reports.

People are therefore asked not to enter the Hrunagil canyon where the lava flow is. The canyon is very narrow and so toxic fumes are likely to accumulate there. They are heavier than air and flow close to the ground.

Travelers on the Fimmvörduháls mountain pass where the crater is located are asked to avoid depressions in clear weather, remain on top of hills and hillocks and don’t face the wind if it’s blowing fumes from the eruption their way.

Plans to open the road into the valley of Thórsmörk where the lava flow is headed were aborted this morning because the flow in the river Hvanná suddenly increased. The road will therefore remain closed and police will keep watch at all times.

Here is a word of advice from ICE-SAR for people planning to hike up Fimmvörduháls:

Planning to hike to the site of the volcano eruption? Read this!

Hiking Fimmvörduháls from the south side (from Skógar) is permitted now, but we urge people to be careful and well-prepared, and stress that you are there on your own, the responsibility is all yours.

The glacier itself (Eyjafjallajökull) and Thórsmörk are still no-access zones, and the road up Fimmvörduháls is closed to cars because it's too wet.

You can drive to Skógar, which is perfectly reachable in a normal car, and hike up from there. You should register at Skógar so that they know you're there in case you get into trouble.

Expect to take about five hours to reach the top in good conditions—but whether you get good conditions is a total crapshoot. We do see blizzards there in July! Weather up there changes real fast, so dress and pack accordingly.

ICE-SAR has this advice:

* Follow the weather report and take it into account.
* Make a travel plan and leave it with friends/family.
* Familiarize yourself with the area.
* Good clothing is of course utterly crucial. Ideally wear several layers of breathable clothing and the outermost layer needs to be waterproof.
* Pack at least a minimal first-aid kit and energy-rich food.
* Good telecommunications equipment is important for safety, and you have to know how to use it. A VHF radio or an NMT phone can make all the difference if something goes wrong, and to be able to notify others of a changed plan.
* A GPS locator and a compass should be standard equipment. And you have to know how to use them.
* A sleeping bag, an insulating mattress and a waterproof outer bag or a small tent can make the difference between life and death if a traveler needs to lie outdoors for some reason.
* It is better to back out in time than to get yourself into real trouble.

Also, if you are carrying expensive and heavy photo gear, make sure you pack it nice and waterproof—and make sure you are ready to carry it all along with your food and other necessities for ten hours.