MP Off Grid Living: Volcano Alert: Iceland raises Bardarbunga Alert level to Orange - Quake Swarm/Uplift/Magma Movement

The 3D map of earthquakes under Bárðarbunga.
Twenty-four-year-old Icelandic programmer Bæring Gunnar Steinþórsson at CCP has set up a webpage showing the seismic activity underthe Bárðarbunga volcano, located under Vatnajökull glacier, in 3D.Bæring uses the data from apis.is, visir.is reports. The data gives the depth and magnitude of each earthquake as well as the GPS coordinates. “This makes it easy to work with the data,” Bæring said. His 3D graph shows the activity hour by hour and can be rotated to show the activity from different angles. The earthquakes have been continuing since the weekend and show no signs of letting up but there is also no sign of an eruption yet. The earthquakes have been below a magnitude 3.0 during the last 48 hours but before that there were some between 3.0 and 4.0. - Iceland Review

Iceland raises Bardarbunga volcano alert to Orange

<An intense earthquake swarm began Saturday deep beneath Bárðarbunga, Iceland’s largest volcano complex. As of Tuesday,
the Icelandic Met Office cautions there’s no evidence yet of magma moving toward the surface or that an eruption is imminent. Still, Iceland is springing into action, which suggests the threat is real. These people know their volcanoes.Due to the weekend’s heightened seismicity, on Monday the Icelandic Met Office raised its aviation color code for Bárðarbunga to orange to signify a “heightened or escalating unrest with increased potential of eruption.” Prime Minister Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson met with civil defense officials on Monday, and roads near the remote volcano have been closed. Iceland Magazine reports that Iceland’s National Commissioner of Police has declared a Civil Protection Uncertainty Phase, increasing surveillance of the volcano and its surroundings. The Icelandic Coast Guard deployed additional seismic monitors by helicopter over the weekend.The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service has positioned a webcam to keep an eye on the volcano.
Bárðarbunga is a big volcano directly beneath Iceland’s largest glacier. Over the past 10,000 years, it has erupted “more lava than any other volcano on the planet.” Still, not much is known about it, mostly because it sits below so much ice. Plus, the last major eruption here was more than 100 years ago.> SLATE.com

Continue reading the main stIceland raises Bardarbunga volcano alert to orange

File photo: Bardarbunga, 7 November 1996

Seismic activity has greatly increased at Bardarbunga, including a strong earthquake, uplift, and road closures.

18 August 2014 Last updated at 15:06 ET
BBC News Europe
The risk of an eruption at Iceland's Bardarbunga volcano has increased, with signs of "ongoing magma movement", Iceland's meteorological office says.

The risk level to the aviation industry has been raised to orange, the second-highest level, the met office said.

Any eruption could potentially lead to flooding or an emission of gas, the office added in a statement.

The Eyjafjallajokull volcano erupted in 2010, producing an ash cloud that severely disrupted European airspace.

The Bardarbunga volcanic system is located under the north-west region of Iceland's Vatnajokull glacier.

'Strongest earthquake'

"Intense seismic activity" began at the volcano on 16 August, and there was a strong earthquake in the region early on Monday, the met office said.

"This is the strongest earthquake measured in the region since 1996.

"Presently there are no signs of eruption, but it cannot be excluded that the current activity will result in an explosive subglacial eruption, leading to an outburst flood and ash emission," the met office said, adding that the situation was being monitored.

The aviation colour codes are used to indicate the level of risk a volcano poses to air travel.

An orange alert indicates that a volcano is showing "escalating unrest with increased potential of eruption", or is erupting without any major volcanic ash emissions.

A red alert means that an eruption is "imminent", or is under way with "significant emission of volcanic ash into the atmosphere".

The ash cloud produced by the 2010 Eyjafjallajokull eruption led to hundreds of thousands of passengers being affected by flight restrictions.

Magma Rise at Bárðarbunga/ Update

BPEarthWatch Published on Aug 19, 2014

The Bárðarbunga Webcam is now in the Links on our Website, http://www.bpearthwatch.com

Another Unpronounceable Icelandic Volcano Is Getting Ready to Explode - How Bad Could it Be?

By Eric Holthaus - SLATE.com

With a fidgety volcano on their hands, officials in Iceland have begun preparations for what could be a busy week.

An intense earthquake swarm began Saturday deep beneath Bárðarbunga, Iceland’s largest volcano complex. (Here’s how to pronounce it.) As of Tuesday, the Icelandic Met Office cautions there’s no evidence yet of magma moving toward the surface or that an eruption is imminent. Still, Iceland is springing into action, which suggests the threat is real. These people know their volcanoes.

Due to the weekend’s heightened seismicity, on Monday the Icelandic Met Office raised its aviation color code for Bárðarbunga to orange to signify a “heightened or escalating unrest with increased potential of eruption.” (In response, the stock price of Icelandair fell by 4.35 percent.)

Prime Minister Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson met with civil defense officials on Monday, and roads near the remote volcano have been closed. Iceland Magazinereports that Iceland’s National Commissioner of Police has declared a Civil Protection Uncertainty Phase, increasing surveillance of the volcano and its surroundings. The Icelandic Coast Guard deployed additional seismic monitors by helicopter over the weekend.

The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service has positioned a webcam to keep an eye on the volcano.

How likely is an eruption? And how bad could it be?

Bárðarbunga is a big volcano directly beneath Iceland’s largest glacier. Over the past 10,000 years, it has erupted “more lava than any other volcano on the planet.” Still, not much is known about it, mostly because it sits below so much ice. Plus, the last major eruption here was more than 100 years ago.