A red glow visible from Reykjavik. A volcano has erupted again on the Reykjanes Peninsula

This is the tenth eruption of this volcano since 2021 and the seventh this year. According to the Icelandic Institute of Meteorology, a 2.5 to 3 km long fissure was formed on the night from Wednesday to Thursday. The explosion was preceded by a series of small earthquakes.

– Between 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., a series of small earthquakes began in the Sundhnuka crater row. We also received signals about pressure changes in the wells in Svartsengi, said Einar Bessi Gestsson, a natural disaster expert at the Icelandic Meteorological Institute.

The eruption occurred at 11:14 p.m. The red glow, associated with the flow of lava, was visible from the capital of Iceland – Reykjavik, approximately 50 kilometers away.

Due to the volcanic eruption, a state of alarm was introduced in the areas near the crater. The police and Civil Defense officers evacuated about 60 residents of Grindavik.

The nearby thermal water bathing area with the Blue Lagoon hotel was also closed and evacuated. The manager of Keflavik International Airport, Isavia, announced that the volcanic eruption does not disrupt air traffic.

– Grindavik appears unthreatened and it is unlikely that this crack will extend. However, nothing can be ruled out, noted Magnus Tumi Gudmundsson, a geophysics expert who worked on site with the services.

The volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula was dormant for several hundred years and awakened in 2021. From then on, lava comes out of its cracks from time to time. Previous eruptions have caused much destruction in Grindavik.

In January this year, lava reached the buildings of this settlement, causing a fire in three houses. During the eruption in May, lava flows reached 450 meters high. Even though the town is protected by a protective embankment, many of its inhabitants decided to move to safer cities.

“From a broader perspective, the latest eruption was smaller than the previous ones,” Gudmundsson added.