Yesterday (13-November-2019) has been a little quieter in the earthquake swarm in Askja volcano. Largest earthquake in the last 24 hours had a magnitude of Mw3,1. Over the last 48 hours around 500 earthquakes have happened in Askja volcano. There was a peak in activity after the magntidue Mw3,1 earthquake but it slowed down soon after that. Depth of this earthquake swarm has changed slightly, deepest points are now at 7 to 8 km and that might be a problem since magma is possibly at 10 to 15 km depth in this location. If this is a magma that can erupt I don’t know, if there is magma at this location it might also be a magma that’s too cold to erupt.
The earthquake activity in Askja volcano. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.
The earthquakes continue to be rift-zone earthquakes along fault lines and there is as of the writing of this article no signs of magma movement in Askja volcano as a result of this earthquake swarm. This earthquake swarm has been going on for a week from today (14-November-2019). It is a question if this earthquake swarm is over or if this is just a quiet time in this earthquake swarm activity. It is known in Askja volcano eruption history that eruption in Askja volcano and nearby fissure swarms start with long period of earthquake activity that continues to grow over time. This can be read in this studies of earlier eruptions, study 1961 eruption, study 1875 eruption. Current situation continues to keep monitoring what is going on.
Science article on earthquake activity in Askja (added link)
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Source(IMO)
Specialist remark:
The seismic activity east of Askja, that began on November 7th, has been decreasing since wednesday night (13.11) but it is still not over. Around 1200 earthquakes have been recorded in the area since the swarm started, with three earthquakes larger than M3. No volcanic tremor has been detected in the area and no deformation is currently ongoing. This swarm is likely due to tectonic activity. Earthquake swarms occur regularly around Herðubreið and Askja, however the current activity is so far, the largest swarm measured in this area. IMO is monitoring the activity 24/7.
Written by a specialist at 15 Nov 01:00 GMT
Reykjanes ridge, strong swarm!