Heading for volcanic unrest in the next days or weeks
Working on the defense walls in Svartsengi last December. mbl.is/Eyþór Árnason
Scientists at the Icelandic Met Office met yesterday morning to discuss the situation on the Reykjanes peninsula. They believe that we’re headed for another period of unrest in the next few days or a week, which could end in an eruption.
“At the meeting this morning we examined the latest data and modeling calculations based on GPS meters and satellite images, and we can see that the inflation and magma accumulating underneath Svartsengi is continuing,” natural hazard expert Einar Bessi Gestsson tells us.
It is estimated that the magma that has accumulated under the Svartsengi is beginning to approach the level that it was before the last eruption.
If a magma dike forms subsequently, a volcanic eruption will occur
He states that the time frame is uncertain, but in the coming days or a little over a week, the volume will be the same as before the volcanic eruption on January 14.
“When it reaches the same level or similar, it is more likely that something will happen. It will create a possible magma dike, followed by a volcanic eruption or just a magma run,” says Gestsson.
He says it is uncertain whether the pressure in the system will need to be a little higher than before the last eruption and that rigorous monitoring will be in place as it has been.
