Volcanic eruptions on Iceland's Reykjanes peninsula could continue for decades: Study

Researchers have analysed local earthquake and geochemical data to predict that Iceland's ongoing volcanic eruptions may continue on and off for years to decades.

The eruptions have threatened the country's most densely populated region and vital infrastructure. Researchers have studied these eruptions and findings of the same have been published in the scientific journal Terra Nova.

The study mentioned that researchers from six universities, Uppsala University (Sweden), the University of Iceland, the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno University of Technology (Czechia), the University of Oregon (USA) and the University of California at San Diego (USA), predict recurrent, moderately significant eruptions of a similar pattern in the upcoming years to decades, given the volcanic activity on Iceland during the last three years.

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As quoted by Eurek Alert, Valentin Troll, Professor of Petrology at Uppsala University said,"The study uses information from local earthquakes and geochemical data on the erupted magma through time to reveal the geological processes behind these recent Icelandic eruptions."

"A comparison of these eruptions with historical events provides strong evidence that Iceland will have to prepare and be ready for this volcanic episode to continue for some time, possibly even years to decades," added Troll, who led the study.

Iceland is known for its active volcanoes, such as Eyjafjallajökull and Katla. The researchers studied volcanoes on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula. A state of emergency was issued by authorities due to the Reykjanes Peninsula eruptions, which have occurred eight times since 2021.

Notably,Icelandic authorities said Monday (Jun24) that a volcanic eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula in southwestern Iceland had ended after 24 days of activity.

The Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) said in a statement that since June 22 "no activity has been seen in thecrater", where in late May orange lava fountains burst out north of the fishing town of Grindavik.

The Reykjanes peninsula had not experienced an eruption for eight centuries until a March 2021 eruption, but the study suggest that this renewed activity may last long.

'Pattern is likely to continue into the future'

Researchers say that the magma pool might sustain similarly-sized volcanic eruptions in the area for years or possibly decades more, hence warning authorities that the magma source is essential to the continued safety of local populations.

"Based on prior eruptive behaviour, this pattern is likely to continue into the future, posing considerable risk to the local population and to important infrastructure, such as Keflavík Airport, several geothermal power plants, the Blue Lagoon tourist spa, and population centres like Keflavík, Grindavík, and Greater Reykjavik," Troll added.

The study, based on geochemical and seismic evidence, said that the eruptions are fed by a shared magma reservoir located 9–12 km beneath Fagradalsfjall, not by independent sources or a bigger reservoir spanning the entire peninsula. This is the reason why scientists predict that in the upcoming years to decades, there will be frequent eruptions.

(With inputs from agencies)