Massive Volcanic Eruption Is Making Iceland Grow

NPR | By Geoff Brumfiel

Published September 22, 2014 at 10:05 AM PDT

1 of 5 — A plane flies over the Bardarbunga volcano as it spews lava and smoke in southeast Iceland on Sept. 14. The Bardarbunga volcano system has been rocked by hundreds of tremors a day since mid-August, prompting fears the volcano could explode.

A plane flies over the Bardarbunga volcano as it spews lava and smoke in southeast Iceland on Sept. 14. The Bardarbunga volcano system has been rocked by hundreds of tremors a day since mid-August, prompting fears the volcano could explode.

2 of 5 — Lava flows out of the Bardarbunga volcano. At 6,500 feet, Bardarbunga is Iceland's second-highest peak and is located under one of Europe's largest glaciers, Vatnajoekull.

Lava flows out of the Bardarbunga volcano. At 6,500 feet, Bardarbunga is Iceland's second-highest peak and is located under one of Europe's largest glaciers, Vatnajoekull.

3 of 5 — The lava has covered an area roughly the size of Manhattan.

The lava has covered an area roughly the size of Manhattan.

4 of 5 — The Holuhraun Fissure, north of the Bardarbunga volcano on Sept. 13. So far, lava has been flowing from fissures, not the volcano itself.

The Holuhraun Fissure, north of the Bardarbunga volcano on Sept. 13. So far, lava has been flowing from fissures, not the volcano itself.

5 of 5 — The eruption, which started in August, shows no signs of slowing down.

The eruption, which started in August, shows no signs of slowing down.

The tiny, island nation of Iceland is in the middle of a growth spurt. For the past month, the country's Bardarbunga volcano has been churning out lava at a prodigious rate. And the eruption shows no signs of abating.

It all began with a swarm of earthquakes in late August, according to Rikke Pedersen, with the Nordic Volcanological Center at the University of Iceland. Volcanologists watched as the tremors moved north about 25 miles. A fissure opened and lava began pouring forth.

So far, the lava field has covered more than 14 square miles.

Pedersen says the eruption is being caused by the spreading of the Eurasian Plate and the North American Plate, which are moving apart from each other. As the plates spread, magma from Bardarbunga has started flowing into the gap — literally making Iceland expand.

Pedersen says the eruption has produced more lava than any eruption since 1947, and it could soon surpass even that one. "So far, it's only been 20 days," she says.

You can watch the eruption live here and here.

Corrected: November 11, 2014 at 9:00 PM PST

A previous version of this post quoted a researcher as saying the lava field had covered more than 14 square miles, or an area that "corresponds about to the size of Manhattan." Manhattan is said to be about 24 square miles.