[tonyjayice]

Tonight at around or after midnight GMT. a volcanic eruption started in Eyjafjallajökull glacier, South Iceland.
200 years have passed since the last eruption from this volcano, it lasted 2 years.
News from the area tells me that evacuations are going smoothly and according to plans and that there is no imminent danger to residents, no reports of injury of any kind.
Ash started falling in nearby farms about 40 minutes after the eruption started and people state that they can smell brimstone and taste ash in the air, although wind is blowing from the east
No earthquakes have been reported, from the geological institute of iceland, suggesting an eruption but tension has been rising in the area in the past few weeks with earthquakes counting in the hundreds and thousands, most of them around 2 on the ricter-scale; the biggest, around four.
Glow from the eruption can be seen hundreds of kilometers away as it lights up the sky and surrounding clouds, danger of flooding in rivers in the area makes part of the worries that people in the nearby farms and villages carry with them as they evacuate, not knowing whether they can come back tomorrow or even next week.



Anton Albert, reporting.

[Ratmagiclady]

Wow. Hope it's not too bad, but it must be spectacular. Take care, if you're nearby!

[mithrandir]

Our prayers are with you for the safety of the local inhabitants.

[tonyjayice]

as for now, no one is in danger, and it seems the eruption is pretty contained and modest, although the volcanic crack is around 1km long.
all flights to and from Iceland have been canceled or are delayed until further information is gathered and the situation is assessed.
more news hopefully soon, as it is morning up and sunrise is getting close..

[imtheguy]

Tonight at around or after midnight GMT. a volcanic eruption started in Eyjafjallajökull glacier, South Iceland.
200 years have passed since the last eruption from this volcano, it lasted 2 years.
News from the area tells me that evacuations are going smoothly and according to plans and that there is no imminent danger to residents, no reports of injury of any kind.
Ash started falling in nearby farms about 40 minutes after the eruption started and people state that they can smell brimstone and taste ash in the air, although wind is blowing from the east
No earthquakes have been reported, from the geological institute of iceland, suggesting an eruption but tension has been rising in the area in the past few weeks with earthquakes counting in the hundreds and thousands, most of them around 2 on the ricter-scale; the biggest, around four.
Glow from the eruption can be seen hundreds of kilometers away as it lights up the sky and surrounding clouds, danger of flooding in rivers in the area makes part of the worries that people in the nearby farms and villages carry with them as they evacuate, not knowing whether they can come back tomorrow or even next week.



Anton Albert, reporting.

Way better than CNN.

[dragonfly]

Are there any pics?

[RoxnDox]

Are there any pics?

Google for 'eruption Iceland photos' and you'll get lots of pics :-)

http://http.ruv.straumar.is/static.ruv.is/vefur/innklipp_eldgos.wmv is some video that shows the rift fissure quite nicely.

Jim

[Parallax]

We want pictures!

[lithos]

Are the bananas all right?

[tonyjayice]

Are the bananas all right?

hahah... bananas? .. sure.. they're fine

I said I would keep you guys posted, but I have been pretty busy this week (and will be for the weeks to come)
But, I want to share this video of the eruption with you just to let you see it.
the crack is about 300m-500m long and spews out lava around 1000°C hot.
the biggest spurts can reach around 150-200m high, so this is nothing to play with (even if it is in essence fire).
here it is:

ps. I did not take the vid. myself sadly (I live on the northern part of Iceland.. )

[Christopher M.W.T]

So called man made global warming in theory could melt glaciers....

A volcano can actually do it....

Why aren't the environmentalists crying foul now, especially with all that poisonous gas been emitted into the atmosphere!

Volcano's are by far the worst ozone terrorists around!

[reeftool]

So called man made global warming in theory could melt glaciers....

A volcano can actually do it....

Why aren't the environmentalists crying foul now, especially with all that poisonous gas been emitted into the atmosphere!

Volcano's are by far the worst ozone terrorists around!

There are already predictions for a record cold winter for North America and Europe this coming year if this eruption continues.

[Ratmagiclady]

So called man made global warming in theory could melt glaciers....

A volcano can actually do it....

Why aren't the environmentalists crying foul now, especially with all that poisonous gas been emitted into the atmosphere!

Volcano's are by far the worst ozone terrorists around!

*eyebrow raise.* What are you gonna do, put a cork in it? Maybe we can plug it up with Hummers.


Volcanoes actually can give a short term reprieve or offset from 'global warming' effects, though they of course cause other conditions that are not so lovely, and, of course, they don't actually stop the carbon buildup from going on, either. Once the volcanic stuff falls out, you're pretty much right back to the warming. Like with Pinatubo.

Only problem is, all the while, the denier crowd are saying the volcano's short term effects mean nothing needs doing at all.

Volcanic glacier melt isn't a lot of fun to be downstream of, what with lahars and all, but that doesn't mean that volcanoes have somehow been causing the Arctic sea ice and the glaciers to melt and thin. Hot lava does of course, often melt a volcano's own ice cover, but that's a very localized phenomenon, not a global one.

There could indeed be a cold year or two in the Northern hemisphere. I don't know what effect that may have on arctic conditions, but it could help there for a while. Or not.

[Parallax]

So called man made global warming in theory could melt glaciers....

A volcano can actually do it....

Why aren't the environmentalists crying foul now, especially with all that poisonous gas been emitted into the atmosphere!

Volcano's are by far the worst ozone terrorists around!

Oh, I'm sure the Sierra Club and PETA will find somebody to sue over this.

[reeftool]

Well, I bought a new pair of cross country skis this past winter and used them about a half dozen times, all between the middle of December-mid January and only once on good snow. Besides the fun, I actually make more money with a cold, nasty winter so come on volcano......keep belching that ash!