Iceland evacuates hundreds as volcano erupts again

APNews ^ | 14. apríl 2010 | GUDJON HELGASON and JILL LAWLESS

[VU4G10]

A volcano under a glacier in Iceland erupted Wednesday for the second time in less than a month, melting ice, shooting smoke and steam into the air, closing a major road and forcing hundreds of people to flee rising floodwaters.

Authorities evacuated 800 residents from around the Eyjafjallajokull glacier as rivers rose by up to 10 feet (3 meters).

Emergency officials and scientists said the eruption under the ice cap was 10 to 20 times more powerful than one last month, and carried a much greater risk of widespread flooding.

"This is a very much more violent eruption, because it's interacting with ice and water," said Andy Russell, an expert in glacial flooding at the University of Newcastle in northern England. "It becomes much more explosive, instead of a nice lava flow oozing out of the ground."

[Leifur]

Thanks for the concern, actually we heat our houses with hot geothermal waters, so no AC unit ;).

[Steve Van Doorn]

That is sweet
living on one huge volcano.

[winoneforthegipper]

Iceland has become a major concern again this morning. There are indications that the Glacier is giving way.

http://eldgos.mila.is/eyjafjallajokull-fra-fimmvorduhalsi/

The webcam is showing complete cracking in some areas and a pronounced increase in lahar flow. Also seismic activity is becoming quite different and noticeable.

Keep the cam open today, I think this could be an historic day!

[winoneforthegipper]

Are you guys watching the cam? Holy Crap!

[Quix]

THX THX.

WILL OPEN IT.

[Quix]

System may be too crowded. Not yet loading.

[winoneforthegipper]

should...I just refreshed and it came up!

[Quix]

me too

thx.

off to dentist

[winoneforthegipper]

Katla, is really ramping up now to.....solid harmonic signatures....

http://hraun.vedur.is/ja/Katla2009/gosplott.html

[winoneforthegipper]

Major shift in the glacier a few seconds ago, Lahar has become a rapid!

heads up!

[Steve Van Doorn]

oh boy here we go. Katla is what you were afraid of.

remember i was showing you the long magma channel that makes up Iceland that starts someplace near the gulf of Mexico?
Don't know what I was thinking.
Stupid me. When currents flow up a channel it would create a greater build up of pressure which spits out like a sprinkler head.

In other words because of the long tube the activity should be regular and quite explosive.

[Steve Van Doorn]

does it refresh on its own? I can not read that site.

[winoneforthegipper]

Yeah that camera is still shots that update a few seconds a part.

As for Katla, officially the Icelandic Met office is saying nothing is going on under her. But as you can see by those graphs indeed magma is increasing it's presence. Not sure why at this time they choose to lowball the chance..

Indeed, the feeder tubes in Iceland are incredible. What we have seen from Eyjaf is pretty much not the explosive nature of the volcano itself but the interaction of the gasses and the melt water from the glacier. Though there have been rock bombs spit out from eyjaf the activity has not been in total that spectacular.

If Katla does wake more, all bets are off, thicker ice, more ice and it is a true blast beast.

This whole place is like a timebomb right now if you ask me.

[Quix]

THANKS THANKS.

WHEEEEE.

Sigh.

[winoneforthegipper]

That portion of the glacier indeed did collapse last night....

http://eldgos.mila.is/eyjafjallajokull-fra-fimmvorduhalsi/

[Quix]

THANKS.

SOBERING

[Steve Van Doorn]

yes, I see that. The water run off didn’t change much I notice.

[winoneforthegipper]

Yeah and Katla is calming....down....good news for now!

[Steve Van Doorn]

has the Eyjafjallajokull volcano calmed down a bit? I notice the glacier is broken even more now but the volcano its self seems to have died back some?

Yeah I cut and pasted "Eyjafjallajokull"

[winoneforthegipper]

Yeah Steve, you are correct. Eyjaf has re-entered a lava phase, strombolian style(etna) eruption. Which makes sense when those that know suggest that the explosive early nature was more due to the ice and water interaction that the volcano itself. Now that the throat so to speak is clear of distraction Lava bombs should be it's greatest show.

However, there is no indication that magma has been restricted, so all eyes should still monitor it.