Eyjafjallajökull Eruption – UPDATE May 7

Fire-Earth Forecasts a Large Explosion at Eyjafjallajökull Glacier, Possibly Soon

New Ash Cloud Grounds Flights

The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), the body responsible for Irish airspace, has imposed flight restrictions at six of Ireland’s airports from 00:00UTC on Friday, citing risks from new volcanic ash cloud.

The flight bans are at Shannon, Donegal, Knock, Galway, Kerry and Sligo airports , which will remain shut until at least  12:00UTC on Friday, May 7, 2010.

The new ash cloud from the ongoing eruption at Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull Glacier volcano  was penetrating the Irish airspace along the west coast of Ireland, the IAA reported.

“The restrictions are required as the increased level of recent volcanic activity has created a massive ash cloud stretching 1,000 miles long and 700 miles wide,” an IAA spokesperson told reporters.

Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull Volcano began a fresh round of explosive ash eruptions in the first week of May. On the morning of May 6, 2010, MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this view of a thick plume of ash blowing east and then south from the volcano.  Ash clouds can have a dramatic influence on air quality and vegetation, including crops. In Iceland, the ash from Eyjafjallajokull has settled thickly on the ground, posing a threat to livestock and wildlife. Image and Caption NASA. [Edited for brevity.] Download large image (880 KB, JPEG)

Recent Status [IMO and Webcams]

• Explosive activity has been increasing since May 4, 2010.
• Ash plume shooting higher, reaching up to 9km (30,000 feet) a.s.l.
• Tephra fallout on the rise.
• “Considerable ashfall at Þykkvabæjarklaustur in Álftaver (at a distance of 65-70 km), (everything has turned black). It has not been established whether the ash cloud south of Eyjafjallajökull is ashfall or ash that has already fallen and is being blown from the ground.” IMO said.
• “Discharge from Gígjökull decreases further and meltwater seems to be running from the eastern side of the glacier. This is different from Tuesday’s meltwater were water was running from the west side. Lava flow might be changing the direction of meltwater flow. Such changes should be taken seriously with regard to possible outbursts due to accumulation of meltwater.”
• Earthquakes occurring at a rate of about 1 per hour (average M2., largest 2.2Mw).
  [should start packing your bags if the frequency reaches 3-5 per hour and the magnitude rises above 3.3Mw. FEWW]
• Eruption appears to be ongoing.
• No measurable geophysical changes within the Katla volcano reported.
• System chaos is increasing,  rather than decreasing.

Volcanic Ash Advisory from London – Issued graphics

Click image to enlarge.

Earthquake location   07 May 15:05 GMT [IMO]

© Veðurstofa Íslands. Click image to enlarge.

Freeze Frame Eyjafjallajökull Hvolsvöllur Webcam (15:30UTC). Fire-Earth estimates the plume to be reaching a height of about 7km a.s.l. Click image to enlarge.

Related Links:

• Eyjafjallajökull Eruption – ALI-EO1 Satellite Image Posted on May 6, 2010
• Volcanic Ash Closes Parts of UK Airspace Again Posted on May 5, 2010
• Eyjafjallajökull Eruption Intensifies, Flight Ban Imposed Posted on May 4, 2010
• Eyjafjallajökull Eruption – Update MAY 2 Posted on May 2, 2010

• Eyjafjallajökull – Shock Waves Caught on Video
• Eyjafjallajökull Eruption Portents Catastrophic Sequence
• Lava finally flows from Icelandic scientific band
• The Next Icelandic Volcano Likely to Erupt
• Iceland’s Bárdarbunga May Be Erupting
• Eyjafjallajökull Eruption Links Page [This page contains a comprehensive index of links to info on Eyjafjallajökull.]

–

Serial No 1,687. Starting April 2010, each entry on this blog has a unique serial number. If any of the numbers are missing, it may mean that the corresponding entry has been blocked by Google/the authorities in your country. Please drop us a line if you detect any anomaly/missing number(s).