NASA Captures Satellite Image Showing Red-Hot Lava Oozing From Iceland’s Volcanic Eruption

NASA has captured a satellite image of red-hot lava oozing from Iceland’s most recent volcanic eruption. The incredible shot, which also shows a large billow of smoke and gas arising from the eruption, has been snapped by OLI-2 (Operational Land Imager-2) on Landsat 9. The lava has flowed across major roads and closed in on the Blue Lagoon, a popular tourist destination, after erupting from a fissure in the Sundhunkur crater series on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula. This is the seventh instance of a volcanic eruption in the area in less than a year.

“This natural color scene [in the picture], acquired by the OLI-2 on November 24, is overlaid with an infrared signal to help distinguish the lava’s heat signature,” read a statement by NASA’s Earth Observatory.

“A plume of gas, consisting primarily of sulfur dioxide, streamed from the lava, although the eruption did not affect flights to and from Iceland,” it added.

According to the Icelandic Meteorological Office, the eruption’s activity had not decreased as quickly as was seen in previous eruptions but had steadied in the last 24 hours.

“Eruptive activity has been steady over the last 24 hours, with lava now flowing predominantly east and southeast, towards and along the base of Fagradalsfjall,” read an update, dated November 27.

“The lava field near Fagradalsfjall has expanded slightly but continues to thicken. Volcanic tremor has remained stable alongside eruptive activity in the vent. The rate of subsidence around Svartsengi has significantly reduced,” it added.

Video: Red Lava Pours Out As Volcano Erupts 7th Time In A Year In Iceland

What is a fissure eruption?

As per scientists, Iceland’s current eruption is a fissure eruption. A fissure is a fracture through which a sheet of magma flows. When this fracture intersects with the surface, lava erupts onto the surface. According to a BBC report, the Reykjanes Peninsula had been inactive for 800 years before volcanic activity resumed in 2021.

Volcanologists have warned that volcanic activity in Iceland had entered a new era. The country is home to 33 active volcanic systems, more than any other European country. It is located on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a fault in the ocean floor that separates the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates and causes earthquakes and eruptions.