New plume of volcanic ash shuts airports

Just as that unpronounceable Icelandic volcano finally faded from the headlines – a new plume of volcanic ash is heading towards Europe.

Ireland and Scotland seem to be most affected this time from ash produced by the continuing Eyjafjallajoekull volcanic eruption. Ireland’s Aviation Authority (IAA) announced that Irish airports will close again from Tuesday at 0600 (GMT/UTC – or 1600 AEST) as the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland moves back over the country. Ryanair said flights between north-west England and Dublin, Cork and Galway have also been cancelled.

The IAA based its decision to close its airspace on information from the Volcanic Ash Advice Centre (VAAC).

The no-fly zone will affect Dublin, Shannon Galway, Sligo, Ireland West (Knock), Donegal, Cork and Kerry. Flights from northwest England to Ireland have also been cancelled, the BBC reported, with 16 services from Manchester and Liverpool airport affected.

At the onset of the Eyjafjallajoekull volcanic eruption, the airspace closure and its flow-on effects were costing airlines over USD200 million a day.

Volcanic eruptions are capable of lasting far longer than headlines. The previous time Eyjafjallajokull erupted, it continued to spew ash into the atmosphere for over a year, from December 1821 to January 1823.

Scientists believe it is quite capable of repeating the performance this time. London’s Daily Telegraph newspaper quoted Sigrun Hreinsdottir, a geophysicist at the University of Iceland, as saying: “From what we’ve seen, it could erupt, pause for a few weeks, and then possibly erupt again. It could go on for months.”

Iceland’s president, Olafur Grimsson, has warned that Iceland’s “Angry Sister”, the much bigger volcano Katla, not far from Eyjafjallajokull, is also set to erupt – but scientists monitoring Katla do not believe that an eruption is imminent.

The three times in recorded history when Eyjafjallajokull has erupted, Katla has followed suit. In Icelandic folklore, Katla is one of the “Angry Sisters” along with its even-more active twin, Hekla. Katla has erupted 16 times since 930AD. Eyjafjallajokull doesn’t get much mention in Icelandic folklore, probably because it’s not considered big enough.

Icelanders, along with airlines around the planet, are hoping that Eyjafjallajokull goes back to sleep – and that mention of Katla fades back into the history books.

Written by: Peter Needham