Fresh new earth is pouring from the ground in Iceland.
And you can watch this lava splattering and flowing live on YouTube.
Icelandic scientists put up a webcam on Saturday near a newly opened fissure on the Reykjanes Peninsula, located on the southwestern part of the island. The relatively gentle eruption, which is currently of no harm to nearby communities, started on March 19.
The slowly flowing lava has drawn local spectators, along with scientists collecting samples and researching the eruption.
“In summary, great science was done, beautiful eruption was experienced, teamwork made the dream work!” tweeted volcanologist Evgenia Ilyinskaya, who is on-site at the eruption.
The livestream, shown by RÚV, the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service, can be watched here:
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The new fissure, which opened up in a valley near the volcano Fagradalsfjall, has formed a conspicuous spatter cone, which is a mound or cone of cooling lava fragments. It’s southwestern Iceland’s first eruption in some 800 years. As of March 23, lava was easily visible bubbling up inside the cone.
Iceland is one of the most volcanically dynamic places on Earth, in large part because the island is located above a large plume of magma (molten rock), called a hot spot. This allows the hot underground rock to reach near, and sometimes erupt onto, the surface. The molten rock erupting from the new fissure is coming from some 17 to 20 kilometers (10 to 12 miles) beneath the ground.
It’s a thrilling, vibrant natural event.
“YESSS !! , eruption !!,” the Icelandic musician Björk wrote on Instagram on Saturday. “we in iceland are sooo excited !!! we still got it !!! sense of relief when nature expresses herself !!!”