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On Monday evening, a volcano began erupting on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwest Iceland.
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According to the Icelandic Met Office, the eruption occurred 3 km (about 1.86 miles) outside of the town of Grindavík.
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Both the New York Times and the Guardian reported that local officials said the eruption does not currently pose a risk to people in the area.
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The eruption followed an “earthquake swarm,” according to the Met Office. An earthquake swarm is a series of small earthquakes in one area.
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This made Monday’s eruption somewhat predicted as earthquake swarms can precede volcanic activity.
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By Tuesday morning, the Met Office said the volcanic eruption had diminished and was continuing to do so, with the lava flow believed to be “about one-quarter of what it was at the beginning of the eruption.”
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About one third of the original fissure is thought to be active as of Tuesday morning.
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“The lava fountains are also lower than at the start of the eruption, reaching about 30 meters at their highest,” the Met Office said.
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Here’s the volcanic plume as seen on Monday night from Hafnarfjordur, a village northeast of the eruption.
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An orange haze in the sky could be seen on Monday near the town of Keflavík, close to the Keflavík International Airport, the country’s largest airport.
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The seismic event attracted people…
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…who took in sights of the plumes…
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…thankfully from what appears to be a good distance away.
Source: https://www.buzzfeed.com/josephlongo/a-volcano-erupted-in-iceland-last-night-so-here-are-14-that