Scientists have not ruled out a new volcanic eruption “in the next few days or weeks”.

Iceland’s volcanoes speak for themselves again. The probability of a new eruption near Mt. Fakrtalsfjal, “In the next few days or weeks”, considered as “substantial”, said (in Icelandic) Iceland Meteorological Office (IMO), Tuesday 2 August.

Since Saturday, intense seismic activity has shaken the Reykjanes peninsula and a large area around Fagradalsfjallhraun. The name refers to the lava field created by the island’s longest volcanic eruption in 50 years, from March 19 to September 18, 2021. At the last public count on Monday, more than 10,000 tremors had been recorded by the IMO’s seismographs. including two with magnitude greater than 5.

Sentinel-1 interferogram from 20 July to 1 August 2022 shows new dyke intrusion on the Reykjanes Peninsula and deformation associated with the 31 July 2022 M5.47 earthquake. pic.twitter.com/bZX5WXnEN8

— Icelandic Meteorological Office – IMO (@Vedurstofan) August 2, 2022

The exploitation of satellite images has confirmed the deformation of the Earth’s crust by the influx of magma at the Fakradalsfjal mountain. It is relatively shallow, less than a kilometer below the surface, and is located in the northeast of the site, far from any habitation. If ground motions and seismic activity seem to be decreasing in recent hours, “This is one of the warning signs of an outbreak.” Last year, the company recalls in a press release.

A similar seismic episode took place in the same area in December 2021 without lava coming out of the ground. But its intensity was low. Before last year, the Reykjanes peninsula had not been the scene of an eruption for nearly eight centuries, but Icelandic experts indicate that the region has entered a new period of volcanic activity.