A man is missing after falling into a ground crack caused by recent volcanic activity on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula. The incident occurred in Grindavik, a coastal fishing town near the site of a recent eruption, on Wednesday morning, January 10, 2024.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) warns of an increased risk of eruption in the Reykjanes area, following their analysis on January 9, 2024, which reveals magma accumulation beneath Svartsengi similar to levels prior to the December 18 eruption.
The eruption site at Sundhnúksgígar, Reykjanes, Iceland, showed no active lava flow on December 21, 2023, with signs of diminishing activity and a decrease in seismic events.
A new volcanic fissure eruption started at 22:17 UTC on December 18, 2023, about 4 km (2.5 miles) NE of the town of Grindavik, Reykjanes, Iceland. The eruptive fissure is about 4 km long, with the northern end just east of Stóra-Skógfell and the southern end just east of Sundhnúk.
Although the rate of inflation at Svartsengi has decreased somewhat since Friday, December 8, 2023, it’s still greater than it was prior to the formation of the dike that traveled under Grindavík on November 10.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) reports a decreased likelihood of an eruption at Svartsengi following the cessation of magma inflow to the November 10 dike. While magma accumulation continues beneath Svartsengi, the immediate eruption risk along the dike has significantly reduced.
On November 21, 2023, the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) reported a decrease in seismic activity in the Reykjanes Peninsula, with 165 earthquakes, all below magnitude 2, detected since midnight. This decline contrasts with the previous days’ average of 1 500 to 1 800 earthquakes per 24-hour period.
Seismicity related to the magma intrusion that formed suddenly a week ago in Reykjanes Peninsula, Iceland remains high and constant, although the level of activity is substantially lower than from November 10 to 12, 2023.
Over 700 earthquakes have been detected along the orientation of a magma intrusion in Iceland during the first 12 hours of November 14, 2023. The latest measurements show that the graben-like formation is still forming and is mechanically active.
Seismicity along the 15-km (9.3 miles) long magma intrusion continues, although the size and intensity of the activity is decreasing, the Icelandic Met Office reported at 13:00 UTC on November 13, 2023
