2023-10-29 05:57:59
Towards a new volcanic eruption in Iceland? Signs of swelling of the ground, probably caused by an accumulation of magma, were detected near the “Blue Lagoon”, a tourist site in southwest Iceland, where the earth has been shaking for several days, announced Saturday the Iceland Meteorological Office (IMO).
A series of earthquakes began to shake the area around Grindavík on Wednesday, not far from the steaming waters of the “Blue Lagoon” on the Reykjanes Peninsula. More than 7,000 tremors were recorded, the largest of which had a magnitude of 4.5. Although the phenomenon is still ongoing, its intensity has decreased considerably.
Over the past 24 hours, geologists have simultaneously observed a swelling of the ground, of a maximum of three centimeters, “occurring more quickly than before” and whose “epicenter is 1.5 km northwest of Mount Thorbjörn, near the Svartsengi geothermal power station and the “Blue Lagoon”. The alert level for aviation has gone from “green” to “yellow”, without disrupting air traffic.
Similar events in the past… without eruption
“At present, there is no indication of magma moving at shallower depths,” the IMO said, stressing that the situation could change quickly. The seismicity of recent days has produced a major fracture which “could allow magma to find paths to shallower depths”, which could therefore lead to a volcanic eruption.
Two similar events occurred in 2020 and 2022 in the same location without an eruption following. These phenomena are common in the region, geologists recalled. The peninsula is located on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, one of the most important on the planet, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates move apart.
This is the fifth swelling of the ground observed in the region since the awakening of seismic activity on the Reykjanes Peninsula in December 2019 after some 800 years of dormancy. Three of them resulted in a volcanic eruption, in 2021, 2022 and last July in the region of Mount Fagradalsfjall, around ten kilometers east of Mount Thorbjörn.
According to the Icelandic Meteorological Office, modeling is underway to determine the depth and size of the phenomenon near Svartsengi. In addition, new radar and satellite images of the Reykjanes Peninsula that will be available on Monday are expected to provide an even clearer picture of recent magma movements and crustal deformations in the region.
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