Iceland Volcano: Eruption Ongoing With Lava Flowing Mostly To The Northeast -- Iceland Met Office

From the Civil Defense patrol flight on May 9. No lava splashes are visible in the crater, although smoke continues to pour out of it. (Photo: Civil Defense)

Svartsengi Uplift Continues

Iceland Met Office

Updated 18. June at 15:40 UTC

• The eruption is ongoing, and lava is flowing from one crater.
• Lava flows mostly to the north alongside Mt. Sýlingarfell.
• Uplift continues in Svartsengi at a similar pace. The rate of uplift is slightly lower than before the eruption started.
• Gas dispersion forecast and current air quality measurements can be found here.

The eruption has been rather stable the past few days and one crater remains active. Lava flows mostly to the north from the crater, but a part of the lava accumulates to the south of the crater. The lava that flows to the north enters the lava lake near Mt. Sýlingarfell and continues to the north where the lava field continues to thicken. A small opening in the western crater rim appeared yesterday at noon and from there a stream of lava flowed a short distance to the west towards Mt. Sundhnúkur, but that stream has since been inactive. Little to no seismicity has been detected in the area.

During the period from June 3 to June 10, the lava extrusion rate from the eruption was estimated at about 10 m³/s, and since then, there have been no significant changes in the eruption's activity, indicating that the flow rate is stable. Despite the ongoing eruption the Svartsengi reservoir continues to display inflation (as was observed during the previous eruption). Geodetic modelling shows that the inflation of the magma reservoir beneath Svartsengi, results from an additional volume increase in the range of 1-2 m³/s. If the magma accumulation rate beneath Svartsengi is combined with the lava extrusion rate on the surface, this provides an indication of the total magma inflow from depth. There is still considerable uncertainty in the model calculations and the estimation of the lava extrusion rate from the eruption in the past week, which can affect this assessment. The development of the unrest will continue to be closely monitored.

The graph shows the estimated amount of magma that has accumulated under Svartsengi between the volcanic eruptions or magma intrusions that have occurred since November 2023.

According to weather forecasts the wind direction is from the southeast today but more southerly tonight. Gas pollution from the eruption will go to the northwest and later to the north and increased gas pollution can be expected in northern Reykjanes. Tomorrow the wind will be light, variable and westerly later in the day. The gas pollution will then move towards the capital area. Real-time measurements of air quality can be found at loftgaedi.is and the gas dispersion forecast here.

The hazard assessment that was published 13 June is still valid until 20 June, unless any significant changes occur.

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