Tourists in Iceland undertook tough hikes on Thursday to watch lava fountains emerging from a volcano just a day after it erupted near capital city Reykjavik.
The volcanic eruption took place near the Mount Fagradalsfjall volcano. The site had witnessed an eruption last year too.
Videos showed onlookers carrying backpacks gazing at bubbling lava and snapping photos.
VIDEO: People watch as lava spews out of a volcanic fissure in the Geldingadalir volcano in Iceland.
The volcano erupted near the capital Reykjavik, spewing red hot lava and plumes of smoke out of a fissure in an uninhabited valley after several days of intense seismic activity pic.twitter.com/KFKqZXdoo7
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) August 4, 2022Related stories
One tourist said it was her "life goal" to see lava. "I had to sit down and had a little cry," she added. "It was so beautiful and emotional. This is the raw power of our planet."
"This is like the raw power of our planet" - tourists watch in awe after a volcanic fissure erupted on around the Fagradalsfjall volcano near Reykjavik, Iceland https://t.co/cYKxe8XJYt pic.twitter.com/OTQ05muY9T
— CNN (@CNN) August 4, 2022
People had initially been asked not to visit the site of the eruption till officials had done a danger assessment, news agency AFP reported. But on Thursday, they said only young children could not go up to spot.
Those in the vicinity of a volcano face the risk of sulphur dioxide inhalation.
Despite that and the tiring hike, over 1,800 people went to see the volcanic eruption on Thursday.
Video from the volcanic eruption in Iceland from Albert who was my spectacular tour guide when I visited (@alberttourguideiceland on insta) #iceland #volcano pic.twitter.com/STDRJEScLn
— WRAL Kat Campbell (@katcampbellwx) August 4, 2022
Iceland, known for his stunning and dramatic landscapes, is also one of the most volcanic regions on Earth. The country has 32 active volcanic systems. An eruption takes place every four years on an average.
"Iceland's intense volcanic activity is the country's geological position, where dynamic geological forces are at work between the spreading plate boundary on the Mid-Atlantic Ocean ridge and a powerful mantle plume creating a hot spot on the surface," the country's official tourism website, Visit Iceland, says.
"Together, they produce large amounts of magma, filling the gaps in the crust made by the spreading plates, resulting in frequent eruptions along the rift zone," it adds.
(With inputs from AFP)
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