Large amount of magma accumulated in a week By Sveinn Arnarsson 25. ágúst 2014 15:49 Dyngjujökull glacier Saturday night. The subterrainean cavern under the Dyngjujökull glacier, that has been stretching northeast from Bárðarbunga, has now reached out from under the glacier, according to geophysicists at the Icelandic Meteorological Office. There's no sign of the seismic activity receding underneath Dyngjujökull, which has been very strong for the past few days. Sara Barsotti, director of the Volcano Watch at the Icelandic Meteorological Office, believes that there is a large amount of magma underneath the glacier and that readings suggest that an eruption is imminent.0.27 square kilometers of magma Sara believes that there's currently 270 million cubic meters of magma underneath the Dyngjujökull glacier. This massive amount of magma is both present in the subterrainean cavern and in the Bárðarbunga caldera. "We're comparing the readings from our GPS devices with the models that we're working with. By comparing data from several sources we've tried to determine how much magma is lying under the glacier. Based on those calculations we believe that the amount of magma, which lies several kilometers beneath the glacier, to be around 0.27 square kilometers, or 270 million cubic meters. That is a very large amount and the activity is still very high." For comparison, 500 thousand cubic meters have been blasted away in making the new tunnel under Vaðlaheiði north of Akureyri. The estimated magma amount under the Dyngjujökull glacier would fill that tunnel 540 times.Sara Barsotti, director of the Volcano Watch of the Icelandic Meteorological Office.5 times the Hvalfjörður tunnel in one week Since the seismic activity in Bárðarbunga started, the magma has been flowing into a subterrainean cavern northeast of Bárðarbunga, towards the Dyngjujökull glacier. Sara believes that the cavern is 30 km long and the bearing has been changing from northeast to north by northeast. "We can see that the seismic activity is the greatest around this cavern and has been increasing for the past few days. We're estimating the length of the caverns based on the locations of the earthquakes under the Dyngjujökull glacier." This cavern has been forming for the past 7 days, allowing the magma to reach as far as it has. The Hvalfjörður tunnel is 5.7 kilometers long by comparison, so the cavern has become almost 5 times as long than that. The cavern has been steadily growing in length, although a growth spurt was observed over the weekend. Geophysicists believe that it has grown by a few kilometers just over the weekend. "At this point, by looking at the quakes by the north end of the cavern, we believe that it has reached an area from outside of the glacier. That means that now the chance is greater that an eruption will take place in a glacier-free area, which would contain much less ash and cause much less damage than an explosive eruption from underneath a glacier," Sara states. In her opinion, Sara says that it isn't more likely to erupt now than before. In the end it's all still guesswork.Map of seismic activity in Vatnajökull.Likely to end with an eruption The activity in the area has been going on now for over a week. The strength has varied, but the seismic activity has picked up in the past few days. The Icelandic Meteorological Office registers thousands of earthquakes every day. Sara believes that the series of events that we're witnessing will eventually result in an eruption. "It wouldn't surprise me. I doubt that it'll recede without an eruption. But it's still a possibility that can't be ruled out. But we can't determine the time factor, we don't know if it'll take hours, days, weeks or even months." News in English Tengdar fréttir Composed music from the Bárðarbunga quakes "All music is just data, in a way. You can interpret Beethoven's Fifth Symphony as data, which is just notes of variable pitches at variable times. In that way, earthquakes are no different." 20. ágúst 2014 14:52 Planes diverted away from danger zone 100000 flights were cancelled during the Eyjafjallajökull eruption. It is doubtful that the same will happen again. 25. ágúst 2014 15:44 Sub-glacial volcanic eruption under Dyngjujökull glacier A small sub-glacial volcanic eruption has now started under the icecap of Dyngjujökull glacier in the Northern part of Vatnajökull glacier. There is no visible eruption cloud and the eruption could remain sub-glacial. 23. ágúst 2014 18:25 Earthquake swarm by Bárðarbunga volcano At about 3 a.m. this morning (16 August), an earthquake swarm began by Bárðarbunga volcano in NW Vatnajökull ice cap. 16. ágúst 2014 10:00 Current situation not comparable to Eyjafjallajökull eruption Ongoing magma movement in Bárðarbunga for the past days have raised questions of possible flight disruptions between Iceland and Europe. 19. ágúst 2014 16:15 Bardarbunga earthquake reclassified as magnitude 4.5 Seismologists at the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) have reclassified the earthquake close to the Bardarbunga volcano last night. 18. ágúst 2014 22:49 Mapped the Bárðarbunga quakes in a 3D model A 24-year old employee of CCP Games has set up a website that shows the seismic activity at Bárðarbunga in a 3D perspective. 19. ágúst 2014 22:45 The aviation alert level lowered The Icelandic Met Office has lowered the aviation alert level for flights. 24. ágúst 2014 12:40 An eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier Scientists at the Icelandic Met Office believe that a small sub-glacial volcanic eruption has now started under the icecap of Dyngjujökull glacier in the Northern part of Vatnajökull glacier 23. ágúst 2014 14:36 The largest earthquake yet A magnitude 5.3 earthquake has occurred in the Bárðarbunga caldera at 5 km depth at 00:09. It is the strongest event measured since the onset of the seismic crisis at Bárðarbunga. 24. ágúst 2014 00:48 Activity in Bárðarbunga volcano Over the last seven years seismic activity has been gradually increasing in Bardarbunga and the fissure swarm north of the volcano. 16. ágúst 2014 10:00 Chances of eruption increase as seismic activity drags on Scientists differ on how to interpret several large quakes from Thursday that originated in the center of the Bárðarbunga caldera. 22. ágúst 2014 11:34 International air traffic not affected International flights still operate to and from Keflavik International Airport, in spite of the eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier, near Bárðarbunga, which started earlier today. 23. ágúst 2014 15:20 Magma flowing into Bárðarbunga caldera with great force All highland roads north of Vatnajökull glacier have been closed and all traffic banned, whether by vehicle or on foot. The Bárðarbunga situation is now attracting worldwide attention on a scale similar to the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in 2010. 20. ágúst 2014 14:41 Strongest earthquake yet in Bardarbunga An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 shook the Bardarbunga volcano just before midnight last night. 22. ágúst 2014 10:13 2800 earthquakes in three days Of these around 950 have occured since midnight today. Several of these events were larger than magnitude 3. 19. ágúst 2014 00:17 Icelandair stocks shake in quake scare Icelandair stocks have dropped sharply since Monday morning. Market analysts agree that the situation at Bárðarbunga is a large factor. 20. ágúst 2014 13:15 No-Fly Zone A large part of southeastern Iceland is a no-fly zone due to the eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier. The decision about the no-fly zone is re-estimated every two hours. 23. ágúst 2014 17:11 Magma surge towards the surface would be very powerful The current situation at Bárðarbunga is many times more powerful than the one that led to the Gjálpar eruption in 1996. 20. ágúst 2014 14:58 No signs of receding seismic actvity in Bárðarbunga Close to 300 earthquakes were recorded there last night, of which two reached over 3 on the Richter scale. 21. ágúst 2014 14:03 "There is full reason to expect an eruption" The seismic activity in Bardarbunga on the Vatnajokull glacier is very powerful and therefore full reason to expect a volcanic eruption according to a specialist at The Icelandic Meteorological Office. A live webcam has been placed in the vicinity of Bardarbunga. 18. ágúst 2014 20:58 No obvious signs of volcanic eruption During three hours of aerial surveillance, there were no obvious signs of volcanic activity. 23. ágúst 2014 21:35 Mest lesið Flugslysið sem skók þjóðina og aldrei munu fást svör við Innlent Vaktin: Forsetakosningar í Bandaríkjunum Erlent Sakfelldur fyrir þátt í banaslysi en annar ökumaður aldrei fundist Innlent Kosningavaktin: Íslendingar ganga að kjörborðinu Innlent „Ég var barnið sem vildi ekki taka í höndina á kennaranum sínum“ Innlent Hagnast um hálfan milljarð og reiknar með þrefalt meira á næsta ári Innlent Segja verkfall kennara skapa ójafnræði og óréttlæti Innlent Perlan þurfi að seljast fyrir áramót svo dæmið gangi upp Innlent „Við erum ógeðslega sár fyrir hönd barnanna okkar“ Innlent Sigurvegarar í keppni Musks ekki valdir af handahófi Erlent
The subterrainean cavern under the Dyngjujökull glacier, that has been stretching northeast from Bárðarbunga, has now reached out from under the glacier, according to geophysicists at the Icelandic Meteorological Office. There's no sign of the seismic activity receding underneath Dyngjujökull, which has been very strong for the past few days. Sara Barsotti, director of the Volcano Watch at the Icelandic Meteorological Office, believes that there is a large amount of magma underneath the glacier and that readings suggest that an eruption is imminent.0.27 square kilometers of magma Sara believes that there's currently 270 million cubic meters of magma underneath the Dyngjujökull glacier. This massive amount of magma is both present in the subterrainean cavern and in the Bárðarbunga caldera. "We're comparing the readings from our GPS devices with the models that we're working with. By comparing data from several sources we've tried to determine how much magma is lying under the glacier. Based on those calculations we believe that the amount of magma, which lies several kilometers beneath the glacier, to be around 0.27 square kilometers, or 270 million cubic meters. That is a very large amount and the activity is still very high." For comparison, 500 thousand cubic meters have been blasted away in making the new tunnel under Vaðlaheiði north of Akureyri. The estimated magma amount under the Dyngjujökull glacier would fill that tunnel 540 times.Sara Barsotti, director of the Volcano Watch of the Icelandic Meteorological Office.5 times the Hvalfjörður tunnel in one week Since the seismic activity in Bárðarbunga started, the magma has been flowing into a subterrainean cavern northeast of Bárðarbunga, towards the Dyngjujökull glacier. Sara believes that the cavern is 30 km long and the bearing has been changing from northeast to north by northeast. "We can see that the seismic activity is the greatest around this cavern and has been increasing for the past few days. We're estimating the length of the caverns based on the locations of the earthquakes under the Dyngjujökull glacier." This cavern has been forming for the past 7 days, allowing the magma to reach as far as it has. The Hvalfjörður tunnel is 5.7 kilometers long by comparison, so the cavern has become almost 5 times as long than that. The cavern has been steadily growing in length, although a growth spurt was observed over the weekend. Geophysicists believe that it has grown by a few kilometers just over the weekend. "At this point, by looking at the quakes by the north end of the cavern, we believe that it has reached an area from outside of the glacier. That means that now the chance is greater that an eruption will take place in a glacier-free area, which would contain much less ash and cause much less damage than an explosive eruption from underneath a glacier," Sara states. In her opinion, Sara says that it isn't more likely to erupt now than before. In the end it's all still guesswork.Map of seismic activity in Vatnajökull.Likely to end with an eruption The activity in the area has been going on now for over a week. The strength has varied, but the seismic activity has picked up in the past few days. The Icelandic Meteorological Office registers thousands of earthquakes every day. Sara believes that the series of events that we're witnessing will eventually result in an eruption. "It wouldn't surprise me. I doubt that it'll recede without an eruption. But it's still a possibility that can't be ruled out. But we can't determine the time factor, we don't know if it'll take hours, days, weeks or even months."
News in English Tengdar fréttir Composed music from the Bárðarbunga quakes "All music is just data, in a way. You can interpret Beethoven's Fifth Symphony as data, which is just notes of variable pitches at variable times. In that way, earthquakes are no different." 20. ágúst 2014 14:52 Planes diverted away from danger zone 100000 flights were cancelled during the Eyjafjallajökull eruption. It is doubtful that the same will happen again. 25. ágúst 2014 15:44 Sub-glacial volcanic eruption under Dyngjujökull glacier A small sub-glacial volcanic eruption has now started under the icecap of Dyngjujökull glacier in the Northern part of Vatnajökull glacier. There is no visible eruption cloud and the eruption could remain sub-glacial. 23. ágúst 2014 18:25 Earthquake swarm by Bárðarbunga volcano At about 3 a.m. this morning (16 August), an earthquake swarm began by Bárðarbunga volcano in NW Vatnajökull ice cap. 16. ágúst 2014 10:00 Current situation not comparable to Eyjafjallajökull eruption Ongoing magma movement in Bárðarbunga for the past days have raised questions of possible flight disruptions between Iceland and Europe. 19. ágúst 2014 16:15 Bardarbunga earthquake reclassified as magnitude 4.5 Seismologists at the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) have reclassified the earthquake close to the Bardarbunga volcano last night. 18. ágúst 2014 22:49 Mapped the Bárðarbunga quakes in a 3D model A 24-year old employee of CCP Games has set up a website that shows the seismic activity at Bárðarbunga in a 3D perspective. 19. ágúst 2014 22:45 The aviation alert level lowered The Icelandic Met Office has lowered the aviation alert level for flights. 24. ágúst 2014 12:40 An eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier Scientists at the Icelandic Met Office believe that a small sub-glacial volcanic eruption has now started under the icecap of Dyngjujökull glacier in the Northern part of Vatnajökull glacier 23. ágúst 2014 14:36 The largest earthquake yet A magnitude 5.3 earthquake has occurred in the Bárðarbunga caldera at 5 km depth at 00:09. It is the strongest event measured since the onset of the seismic crisis at Bárðarbunga. 24. ágúst 2014 00:48 Activity in Bárðarbunga volcano Over the last seven years seismic activity has been gradually increasing in Bardarbunga and the fissure swarm north of the volcano. 16. ágúst 2014 10:00 Chances of eruption increase as seismic activity drags on Scientists differ on how to interpret several large quakes from Thursday that originated in the center of the Bárðarbunga caldera. 22. ágúst 2014 11:34 International air traffic not affected International flights still operate to and from Keflavik International Airport, in spite of the eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier, near Bárðarbunga, which started earlier today. 23. ágúst 2014 15:20 Magma flowing into Bárðarbunga caldera with great force All highland roads north of Vatnajökull glacier have been closed and all traffic banned, whether by vehicle or on foot. The Bárðarbunga situation is now attracting worldwide attention on a scale similar to the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in 2010. 20. ágúst 2014 14:41 Strongest earthquake yet in Bardarbunga An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 shook the Bardarbunga volcano just before midnight last night. 22. ágúst 2014 10:13 2800 earthquakes in three days Of these around 950 have occured since midnight today. Several of these events were larger than magnitude 3. 19. ágúst 2014 00:17 Icelandair stocks shake in quake scare Icelandair stocks have dropped sharply since Monday morning. Market analysts agree that the situation at Bárðarbunga is a large factor. 20. ágúst 2014 13:15 No-Fly Zone A large part of southeastern Iceland is a no-fly zone due to the eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier. The decision about the no-fly zone is re-estimated every two hours. 23. ágúst 2014 17:11 Magma surge towards the surface would be very powerful The current situation at Bárðarbunga is many times more powerful than the one that led to the Gjálpar eruption in 1996. 20. ágúst 2014 14:58 No signs of receding seismic actvity in Bárðarbunga Close to 300 earthquakes were recorded there last night, of which two reached over 3 on the Richter scale. 21. ágúst 2014 14:03 "There is full reason to expect an eruption" The seismic activity in Bardarbunga on the Vatnajokull glacier is very powerful and therefore full reason to expect a volcanic eruption according to a specialist at The Icelandic Meteorological Office. A live webcam has been placed in the vicinity of Bardarbunga. 18. ágúst 2014 20:58 No obvious signs of volcanic eruption During three hours of aerial surveillance, there were no obvious signs of volcanic activity. 23. ágúst 2014 21:35 Mest lesið Flugslysið sem skók þjóðina og aldrei munu fást svör við Innlent Vaktin: Forsetakosningar í Bandaríkjunum Erlent Sakfelldur fyrir þátt í banaslysi en annar ökumaður aldrei fundist Innlent Kosningavaktin: Íslendingar ganga að kjörborðinu Innlent „Ég var barnið sem vildi ekki taka í höndina á kennaranum sínum“ Innlent Hagnast um hálfan milljarð og reiknar með þrefalt meira á næsta ári Innlent Segja verkfall kennara skapa ójafnræði og óréttlæti Innlent Perlan þurfi að seljast fyrir áramót svo dæmið gangi upp Innlent „Við erum ógeðslega sár fyrir hönd barnanna okkar“ Innlent Sigurvegarar í keppni Musks ekki valdir af handahófi Erlent
Composed music from the Bárðarbunga quakes "All music is just data, in a way. You can interpret Beethoven's Fifth Symphony as data, which is just notes of variable pitches at variable times. In that way, earthquakes are no different." 20. ágúst 2014 14:52
Planes diverted away from danger zone 100000 flights were cancelled during the Eyjafjallajökull eruption. It is doubtful that the same will happen again. 25. ágúst 2014 15:44
Sub-glacial volcanic eruption under Dyngjujökull glacier A small sub-glacial volcanic eruption has now started under the icecap of Dyngjujökull glacier in the Northern part of Vatnajökull glacier. There is no visible eruption cloud and the eruption could remain sub-glacial. 23. ágúst 2014 18:25
Earthquake swarm by Bárðarbunga volcano At about 3 a.m. this morning (16 August), an earthquake swarm began by Bárðarbunga volcano in NW Vatnajökull ice cap. 16. ágúst 2014 10:00
Current situation not comparable to Eyjafjallajökull eruption Ongoing magma movement in Bárðarbunga for the past days have raised questions of possible flight disruptions between Iceland and Europe. 19. ágúst 2014 16:15
Bardarbunga earthquake reclassified as magnitude 4.5 Seismologists at the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) have reclassified the earthquake close to the Bardarbunga volcano last night. 18. ágúst 2014 22:49
Mapped the Bárðarbunga quakes in a 3D model A 24-year old employee of CCP Games has set up a website that shows the seismic activity at Bárðarbunga in a 3D perspective. 19. ágúst 2014 22:45
The aviation alert level lowered The Icelandic Met Office has lowered the aviation alert level for flights. 24. ágúst 2014 12:40
An eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier Scientists at the Icelandic Met Office believe that a small sub-glacial volcanic eruption has now started under the icecap of Dyngjujökull glacier in the Northern part of Vatnajökull glacier 23. ágúst 2014 14:36
The largest earthquake yet A magnitude 5.3 earthquake has occurred in the Bárðarbunga caldera at 5 km depth at 00:09. It is the strongest event measured since the onset of the seismic crisis at Bárðarbunga. 24. ágúst 2014 00:48
Activity in Bárðarbunga volcano Over the last seven years seismic activity has been gradually increasing in Bardarbunga and the fissure swarm north of the volcano. 16. ágúst 2014 10:00
Chances of eruption increase as seismic activity drags on Scientists differ on how to interpret several large quakes from Thursday that originated in the center of the Bárðarbunga caldera. 22. ágúst 2014 11:34
International air traffic not affected International flights still operate to and from Keflavik International Airport, in spite of the eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier, near Bárðarbunga, which started earlier today. 23. ágúst 2014 15:20
Magma flowing into Bárðarbunga caldera with great force All highland roads north of Vatnajökull glacier have been closed and all traffic banned, whether by vehicle or on foot. The Bárðarbunga situation is now attracting worldwide attention on a scale similar to the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in 2010. 20. ágúst 2014 14:41
Strongest earthquake yet in Bardarbunga An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 shook the Bardarbunga volcano just before midnight last night. 22. ágúst 2014 10:13
2800 earthquakes in three days Of these around 950 have occured since midnight today. Several of these events were larger than magnitude 3. 19. ágúst 2014 00:17
Icelandair stocks shake in quake scare Icelandair stocks have dropped sharply since Monday morning. Market analysts agree that the situation at Bárðarbunga is a large factor. 20. ágúst 2014 13:15
No-Fly Zone A large part of southeastern Iceland is a no-fly zone due to the eruption in Dyngjujökull glacier. The decision about the no-fly zone is re-estimated every two hours. 23. ágúst 2014 17:11
Magma surge towards the surface would be very powerful The current situation at Bárðarbunga is many times more powerful than the one that led to the Gjálpar eruption in 1996. 20. ágúst 2014 14:58
No signs of receding seismic actvity in Bárðarbunga Close to 300 earthquakes were recorded there last night, of which two reached over 3 on the Richter scale. 21. ágúst 2014 14:03
"There is full reason to expect an eruption" The seismic activity in Bardarbunga on the Vatnajokull glacier is very powerful and therefore full reason to expect a volcanic eruption according to a specialist at The Icelandic Meteorological Office. A live webcam has been placed in the vicinity of Bardarbunga. 18. ágúst 2014 20:58
No obvious signs of volcanic eruption During three hours of aerial surveillance, there were no obvious signs of volcanic activity. 23. ágúst 2014 21:35