How long will the volcanic eruption in Iceland last? It depends how much magma needs to come out, expert says

By Cyrus Moulton December 19, 2023
A close up of the Northern active segment of the original fissure of an active volcano near Grindavik on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula.

The signs started appearing in early November, and people waited anxiously as earthquakes and ground swells indicated a volcanic eruption near Grindavik, Iceland, was imminent.

Monday night, the volcano erupted. But the waiting game continues.

“I think we’re less than 24 hours in after the actual eruption so it’s early days for sure,” Daniel Douglass, teaching professor in marine and environmental sciences at Northeastern’s Marine Science Center, said Tuesday morning.

“It will end eventually — there’s not an endless body of magma that will be released — but how long it takes depends on how much magma needs to come out, and I’ve not heard any prediction of whether this is going to be days, weeks or months.”

Read more from Northeastern Global News.

Photo by AP Photo/Marco Di Marco

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