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There's Another Iceland Volcano to Worry About This Winter

Where: Iceland
October 18, 2011 at 9:04 AM | by | Comments (0)

If you remember back to the not that long ago time known as yesterday, we mentioned how there’s one of those pesky volcanoes causing a little trouble on the bottom half of the earth. Well back up on the top half there might be some problems too, and once again we’re ready to blame Iceland.

At least this year it’ll be a little easier to pronounce and discuss, as the problem child is the Katla volcano. This pesky little sucker is located towards the country’s southern coastline, and unfortunately it’s much larger than the Eyjafjallajokul that we remember so well from last year. Some scientists even think that if Katla gets a little feisty that it could make last year’s ash problems seem small by comparison—oh boy.

Katla hasn’t erupted since 1918, but apparently it has a much larger magma chamber. The last time it did pop its top it lasted for around a month—that’s not good—and even melted ice sheets, causing flooding across some of the country’s farmlands.

The problem seems to be that scientists are noting some earthquake activity in and around the area, and that’s what's making them a little nervous—and concerned. Especially since the tremors have been increasing in strength, and that’s never a good sign. Authorities have already been talking with residents of some smaller communities near Katla in a sort of “just in case” situation.

To summarize, this thing is a big, bad volcano, and unfortunately it’s definitely overdue for an eruption sooner than later. If—or when—it erupts it’s going to be bad for those living in and around the area first and foremost, but after that it’s likely that we’ll see a repeat of last year’s big ash problems.

[Photo: leszekwasilewski]

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