General Volcanic Activity Thread!

[doctormog]

In case anyone is looking for the update map it can be seen at the IMO site here: http://en.vedur.is/photos/volcanoes/volcano_status.png

[Buriedundersnow]

Gisli Olafsson â€@gislio 6m

Small eruption has started in #Bardarbunga volcano - aviation code raised to red.

In case anyone is looking for the update map it can be seen at the IMO site here: http://en.vedur.is/photos/volcanoes/volcano_status.png

 

 

it could well be bigger than that alot of qaukes have been upgraded as the scientists look over the information

[Buriedundersnow]

Gisli Olafsson â€@gislio 2m

Update 1/2 from @almannavarnir - eruption has started but not through glacier and may not do. No signs on surface #Bardarbunga

 

Gisli Olafsson â€@gislio 1m

Update 2/2 from @almannavarnir - areas near Jokulsargljufur and Dettifoss being evacuated as precaution. Not other areas #Bardarbunga

[doctormog]

I think this is what prompted changing the code to red: https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ruv.is%2Ffrett%2Flitid-gos-hafid-i-dyngjujokli&edit-text=&act=url

[Buriedundersnow]

http://almannavarnir.is/displayer.asp?cat_id=8&module_id=220&element_id=3171

[lorenzo]

4.5 Quake just struck on the north-east dike formation, biggest one there for days.

 

And here it is on the swarm timeline.

 

23rd August 2014 14:10 - a small eruption under Dyngjujökull

• A small lava-eruption has been detected under the Dyngjujökull glacier.
• The Icelandic Coast Guard airplane TF-SIF is flying over the area with representatives from the Civil Protection and experts from the Icelandic Met Office and the Institute of Earth Sciences. Data from the equipment on board is expected later today.
• Data from radars and web-cameras is being received, showing no signs of changes at the surface.
• The estimate is that 150-400 meters of ice is above the area.
• The aviation color code for the Bárðarbunga volcano has been changed from orange to red.
• Some minutes ago (14:04), an earthquake occurred, estimated 4.5 in magnitude.

 

http://en.vedur.is/earthquakes-and-volcanism/articles/nr/2947

Edited August 23, 2014 by lorenzo

[Sainsbo]

Now a M3.1 recorded aswell. I wonder if the earthquakes will subside now the eruption is believed to have started.

[Buriedundersnow]

Dave McGarvie â€@subglacial 8m

#Bárðarbunga. 'Small' eruption + 'thin' ice. Quenching and fragmentation of uprising magma could melt overlying ice. Probably 3+ hours.

[The PIT]

This looks like an eruption to me http://baering.github.io/

unless someones stirring up old ash

Edited August 23, 2014 by The PIT

[Tom Jarvis]

looks like allot of steam is now rising on the cam now http://www.livefromiceland.is/webcams/bardarbunga

[BARRY]

looks like it;s beginning

[Evening thunder]

A picture from the link The PIT posted in case some can't the webcam to work (I couldn't for a while).

 

 

Looks like something happening, not very energetic/explosive though. Or perhaps steam, or even dust blowing in strong winds but looks a bit localised for that

[Lauren]

So if this does go off properly and the winds are blowing towards us, what is the worst case scenario do we think?

[karyo]

looks like allot of steam is now rising on the cam now http://www.livefromiceland.is/webcams/bardarbunga

From the colour, I think this is ash not steam.

[Gael_Force]

looks like allot of steam is now rising on the cam now http://www.livefromiceland.is/webcams/bardarbunga

 

It is not steam, dust being blown by the winds over the glacier - a n explanation from a local.

 

 

Just a comment for those that are worried about all that dust on the mila webcam:

The view from the webcam is towards the floodplains of the glacial river Jokulsa a Fjollum. The floodplains/sanders are feed by individual small outlet flows from the glacial snout of Dyngjufjalljökull. These rivers carry an astonishing amount of extremely fine sediments, which deposit on the floodplain. These small rivers respond strongly to the daily fluctuations in the amount of meltwater coming from the glacier. This means, that in the morning only a very small amount of water flows out of the glacier. But during the day they can grow rapidly, because of the additional heat comming from the sun, which melts more ice/snow. This means, for example, that it is much safer and easier to cross the floodplains in the early morning hours (for hikers, bikers and cars). When you are travelling on the side or over the floodplains around noon, you can litterally watch how the individuals streams grow in size and how the plain starts to be flooded.

But why does it look like there is steam?What you are seeing isn’t steam, what you see is dust, that is carried over the floodplain by the strong winds coming from the glacier. The reason is that there are always spots on the plain that are dry enough so that the wind can pic up all those fine sediments and carry them, sometimes quit far, away. Because of the strong winds in this area, there often are strong sandstorms and sometimes you can even see a phenomenon like “Dustdevilsâ€. They look like a small Tornado or a Windhose, but are visible because of the mentioned extremely fine sediments like glacial silt.

[Mapantz]

Eruption is officially taking place sub-glacially. Red alert issued.

[be cause]

So if this does go off properly and the winds are blowing towards us, what is the worst case scenario do we think?

we would be wishing that we had had a lot more global warming

[Sainsbo]

So if this does go off properly and the winds are blowing towards us, what is the worst case scenario do we think?

 

I think it depends on the size of the eruption. No oen can really say how big the eruption will be if it erupts further at all.

 

The Eafkjnlinsadjkl (something like that) eruption in 2010 was only a VEI 4 eruption - which is pretty insignificant in the grand scheme of things. It just caused a lot of trouble because the jet stream was blowing the ash cloud across a lot of the UK, grounding planes. More research has been done into how ash effects airplane engines since then, and it has been concluded that it is safe to fly through some ash, but there's a limit. It also depends on the density of the ash, so if the eruption was the same size as the 2010 eruption, even if the jet stream was directing the ash cloud over us, there would be much less air travel disruption because at the time it was considered unsafe to fly through any ash, regardless of how small the amount was.

 

There's a possibility it could be bigger than the 2010 eruption. A lot bigger. In 1477 this volcano produced a VEI 6 eruption (similar in size to Laki and Krakatoa). VEI 6 eruptions are 100 times larger than VEI 4 eruptions (the scale is Logarithmic, every number increase the size of the eruption increases by a factor of 10). That would obviously cause more problems.. Laki is thought to have lowered average temperatures acoss most of Europe.

 

Reed Timmer posted on Facebook that there is a 3% chance of this eruption being a historic event comparable to Laki, though I'm not sure where he got that figure from. So while there is the chance it will be bad, to make out it's likely would just be scaremongering.

 

Here's the link to Reed's Facebook post. https://www.facebook.com/ReedTimmerTVN/posts/10152654916414169

[lorenzo]

This you tube channel appears to have no issues loading live cams at present.

 

[karyo]

A M4 just appeared but it may be adjusted up or down soon. http://en.vedur.is/earthquakes-and-volcanism/earthquakes/

[john pike]

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/bardarbunga/news/47028/Brdarbunga-volcano-update-.html

A good place for updates

Hi karyo

Was a 4.2 and only 0,9 depth

Has been checked

http://en.vedur.is/earthquakes-and-volcanism/earthquakes/#view=table

[Buzzit]

Well we will know a lot more once it melts through the glacier (which could be 100m to 400m thick depending on the exact spot where the magma is interacting with the ice. I would suggest that we should see a break through tomorrow.. let's hope it is not a VEI 6 or worse (unlikely but this process has been making a lot of the right noises for greater potential in time, without any evidence of such occurring) it may even create a fissure past the end of the glacier itself.

 

http://www.ruv.is/frett/small-eruption-near-bardarbunga

Edited August 23, 2014 by Buzzit

[tinybill]

Well we will know a lot more once it melts through the glacier (which could be 100m to 400m thick depending on the exact spot where the magma is interacting with the ice. I would suggest that we should see a break through tomorrow.. let's hope it is not a VEI 6 or worse (unlikely but this process has been making a lot of the right noises for greater potential in time, without any evidence of such occurring) it may even create a fissure past the end of the glacier itself.

 

http://www.ruv.is/frett/small-eruption-near-bardarbunga

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/iceland-raises-volcano-alert-red-144925442.html#ySxfVse

[tinybill]

http://baering.github.io/

 

2.4  10  mins ago

[Sainsbo]

"Presently there are no signs of ongoing volcanic activity. The aviation color code for the Bárðarbunga volcano remains red as an imminent eruption can not be excluded."

 

Looks like this may have just been a precursor.

 

http://en.vedur.is/earthquakes-and-volcanism/earthquakes#view=map

Edited August 23, 2014 by Sainsbo