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For the third time in two and a half years, Iceland is experiencing a volcanic eruption near the capital Reykjavik. An eruption has started just northwest of Mount Litli-Hrútur, the Icelandic weather agency Vedurstofa announced on its website on Monday. Dense plumes of smoke could be seen on live images of the area on the sparsely populated Reykjanes Peninsula in the early evening, but no surface lava is pouring out of the corner. However, photographs taken by the agency showed red-hot lava spewing out of an elongated fissure in the ground.

The outbreak started around 4:40 p.m. (local time), Vedurstofa wrote on Facebook — it was already early evening in Germany at that time. The crack in the Earth is believed to be about 200 meters long. Scientists are nearby to take measurements. The authority linked the report to a warning for those who wanted to go directly to the natural spectacle: the walk to the site of the eruption was long and the scenery challenging – it was therefore recommended to wait and follow instructions from civil defense .

The volcanic area is located about 40 kilometers southwest of Reykjavik. The last volcanic eruptions in the area were in August 2022 and before that in March 2021, after being heralded by numerous earthquakes. Once again, there have been thousands of earthquakes in the region in recent days, most recently late Sunday night being the most violent of the current 5.2 magnitude earthquake swarm.

Experts had expected a new outbreak due to the quakes. As in 2021 and 2022, the risk to the population was classified as low.

How long the lava flow will last is unclear. The 2021 eruption had caused lava fountains to shoot up again and again for almost half a year, the 2022 eruption was shorter. The natural spectacle attracted many volcanologists, but also hikers and tourists. In general, the outbreaks have not caused great unrest among the Icelandic population. (sda/dpa)