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Strong earthquake swarm in Reykjanes volcano

Yesterday (12-April-2022) at 21:21 UTC an earthquake swarm started with a magnitude Mw3,9 earthquake. There is a chance there have been a swarm of smaller earthquakes in last few weeks in this area. Since there has been almost always on earthquake swarm activity on this part of Reykjanes peninsula in recent months. The largest earthquake was felt over a wide area in south and west Iceland. Over seven earthquakes with magnitude Mw3,0 have taken place, accurate number is difficult to know for sure at the moment.

A lot of red dots showing the massive earthquake activity on Reykjanes peninsula in Reykjanes volcano, some of this earthquake activity extends into the ocean
Strong earthquake activity on Reykjanes peninsula in Reykjanes volcano. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.

The activity now is happening in a volcano named Reykjanes. Last eruption might have happened last time in the year 1831 but that is difficult to know for sure. At the writing of this article around 264 to 280 earthquakes have been recorded by Icelandic Met Office. This number changes every few minutes because the earthquake swarm is strong and ongoing currently. Earthquake activity seems to be increasing at the writing of this article. This situation can change quickly. I am seeing clues that this earthquake swarm is because of magma movement. I think it might result in a eruption, but that is impossible to know for sure now.

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Earthquake swarm north of Grindavík town

Around 14:00 UTC an earthquake swarm started north of Grindavík town. This look like a tension breaking earthquake swarm and that suggests an inflation is happening again in Fagradalsfjall volcano (mountain). Largest earthquake so far had a magnitude of Mw3,3 and second largest earthquake so far had a magnitude of Mw3,0.

Green star on the map north of Grindavík town shows the main earthquake swarm
Earthquake activity north of Grindavík town. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.
Red dots north of Grindavík town showing the main area of earthquake activity
Area of earthquake activity. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.

This earthquake swarm is ongoing, but like with all earthquakes swarms in this area it shows a sign of slowing down for few hours before continuing. There is a chance this earthquake swarm might be over. But I am not yet sure if that is the case.

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Quiet time in Iceland

The year 2022 has not seen a lot of activity in Iceland so far. If that is going to change I don’t know. Since I mostly just report on current activity and not historical activity, when it comes to historical activity I do maintain a list of major earthquakes in Iceland.

While it is quiet I normally won’t post a lot here. That results in smaller traffic. As the world goes. I have made the decision to keep PayPal. This allows people to donate to me and my work here when things are quiet and help me with everything.

The quiet time can end at any time in Iceland, but it can be quiet for up to 10 months at the longest. How long current quiet period is going to last is anyone guess.

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Earthquake activity in Bárðarbunga volcano

This morning an earthquake swarm took place in Bárðarbunga volcano. This earthquake activity is because of inflation of Bárðarbunga volcano. Largest earthquake had a magnitude of Mw4,1. Other earthquakes where smaller in magnitude.

Green star in eastern part of Bárðarbunga volcano showing the activity. Few red dots showing smaller earthquakes in western part of Bárðarbunga volcano.
Earthquake activity in Bárðarbunga volcano. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.

This earthquake activity is normal since the end of the eruption in Bárðarbunga volcano in February 2015 it has been inflating. This earthquake activity is going to change and longer time is going to be between larger earthquakes. This type of earthquake activity is only going to go down to 1 to 2 earthquakes a year in next few years. Then down to one earthquake every few years.

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Earthquake swarm in Krýsuvík-Trölladyngja volcano

This morning (17-March-2022) an earthquake swarm took place in Krýsuvík-Trölladyngja volcano.

Green star close to Kleifarvatn lake to the east. Green star shows the strongest earthquake in the area
Earthquake activity in Trölladyngja-Krýsuvík volcano. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.

Largest earthquake had a magnitude of Mw3,0. Other earthquakes have been smaller in magnitude. Bad weather in last few weeks have prevented good detection of small earthquakes. More earthquake activity might have taken place than appears on Icelandic Met Office maps.

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Earthquake swarm north of Kolbeinsey island

This morning (5-March-2022) an earthquake swarm started north of Kolbeinsey island. Three earthquakes with magnitude above Mw3,0 took place in this swarm and there where few smaller earthquakes recorded. Because of distance from the SIL network only the strongest earthquakes have been detected.

Green stars on the top of the map showing the location of the earthquake swarm. Few orange dots showing smaller earthquakes
Green starts show the location of the earthquake swarm in Kolbeinsey island. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.

The strongest earthquakes with magnitude of Mw3,1 and Mw3,2. There is still a chance of stronger earthquakes in this area. It is unclear what is going on because this area is remote and under the ocean. If an eruption happens at this location there is a chance it won’t be noticed or just noticed on SIL seismometers.

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Strong earthquake in Bárðarbunga volcano

At 10:11 UTC today (22-February-2022) an earthquake with magnitude of Mw4,8 (Icelandic Met Office) or Mw5,0 (EMSC) took place in Bárðarbunga volcano.

Two green stars in Bárðarbunga volcano showing the strong earthquake activity in the volcano. Two smaller dots show smaller earthquakes.
Earthquake activity in Bárðarbunga volcano. Copyright of this image belongs to Icelandic Met Office.

Yesterday (21-February-2022) at 14:08 UTC there had been a earthquake with magnitude of Mw3,0 in Bárðarbunga volcano, along with few smaller earthquakes. This earthquake activity shows that Bárðarbunga volcano continues to inflate after the eruption in the year 2014 to 2015. It is impossible to know when next eruption happens in Bárðarbunga volcano, it might be 10 years from now or 100 years from now. Last eruption in Bárðarbunga volcano before the 2014 eruption was in the year 1902.

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