World
Iceland volcano erupts weeks after thousands were evacuated from a town on Reykjanes Peninsula
A grainy camera footage captured the eruption as a flare of light brightening the sky at 22:17 p.m. local time. Magma, or semi-molten rock, could be seen erupting along the crest of a hill as the eruption progressed
FP Staff December 19, 2023 08:14:36 IST 
The night sky is illuminated caused by the eruption of a volcano on the Reykjanes peninsula of south-west Iceland seen from the capital city of Reykjavik. AP
A volcanic explosion on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula began Monday night, colouring the sky orange and putting the country’s civil defence on high alert.
The eruption appears to have happened roughly four kilometres (2.4 miles) from Grindavik, according to the Icelandic Meteorological Office. A grainy camera footage captured the eruption as a flare of light brightening the sky at 22:17 p.m. local time. Magma, or semi-molten rock, could be seen erupting along the crest of a hill as the eruption progressed.
“The magma flow seems to be at least a hundred cubic meters per second, maybe more. So this would be considered a big eruption in this area at least,” Vidir Reynisson, head of Iceland’s Civil Protection and Emergency Management told the Icelandic public broadcaster, RUV.
Police evacuated Grindavik in November after intense seismic activity in the region destroyed homes and stoked worries of an impending eruption.
The Meteorological Office of Iceland warned in a statement early Tuesday that “the magma is moving to the southwest and the eruption may continue in the direction of Grindavik.”
According to the statement, the extent of the eruption and the pace of the lava flow are “many times more than in previous eruptions on the Reykjanes Peninsula in recent years.”
Iceland sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic and averages an eruption every four to five years. The most disruptive in recent times was the 2010 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which spewed huge clouds of ash into the atmosphere and grounded flights across Europe for days because of fears ash could damage airplane engines.
Scientists say a new eruption would likely produce lava but not an ash cloud.
Iceland’s foreign minister, Bjarne Benediktsson said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that there are “no disruptions to flights to and from Iceland and international flight corridors remain open.”
A coast guard helicopter will attempt to confirm the exact location — and size — of the eruption, and will also measure gas emissions.
Grindavik, a fishing town of 3,400, sits on the Reykjanes Peninsula, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) southwest of the capital, Reykjavik and not far from Keflavik Airport, Iceland’s main facility for international flights.
