General Discussion

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Experts say one of Iceland's most feared volcanoes looks ready to erupt, with measurements indicating magma movement, raising fears of a new ash cloud halting flights over Europe.

The Hekla volcano is close to the ash-spewing Eyjafjoell, which last year caused the world's biggest airspace shut down since World War II, affecting more than 100,000 flights and 8 million passengers.

The Iceland Civil Protection Authority says it is closely monitoring the situation.

"The movements around Hekla have been unusual in the last two to three days," University of Iceland geophysicist Pall Einarsson said.

While this might not necessarily mean an immediate blast, he says "the volcano is ready to erupt".

   http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/07/06/3262975.htm

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   http://www.ruv.is/hekla

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Mount Hekla is one of Iceland’s most active volcanoes and last erupted in 2000, 1991 and 1981. Scientists have been expecting a new eruption for several years and recent activity under the mountain seems to have confirmed that the volcano is ready to erupt.

However, geophysicist Pall Einarsson said in interview with IceNews today that the current volcano scare is simply made up: “They are actually quoting me as saying that Hekla will erupt soon; but there is nothing new in this. I’ve been saying this for three or four years and ‘soon’ means different things to journalists and geologists,” he said.

The mountain has risen up by about a metre – a sure sign that magma is close to the surface. But no earthquakes have been measured – which means that an eruption is not immediately imminent. The Icelandic  Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management has advised, as always, to take every precaution when climbing the Hekla mountain.

Read more:    http://www.icenews.is/index.php/2011/07/07/icelandic-scientist-surprised-by-hekla-volcano-eruption-sensation/#ixzz1RShPVwrA