Volcano flares to life near Iceland's capital after lying dormant for 6000 years

The night sky glows following the eruption of a volcano on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula, not far from the capital Reykjavik, on March 19. Photo / AP

A long-dormant volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland has flared back to life, spilling lava down two sides in that area's first volcanic eruption in nearly 800 years.

Initial aerial footage, posted on the Facebook page of the Icelandic Meteorological Office, showed a relatively small eruption so far, with two streams of lava running in opposite directions.

Eldgos á Reykjanesskaga - Fyrstu myndir

Fyrsta mynd af gosinu. Tekin úr þyrlu Landhelgisgæslunnar. Syðri endi tungunnar er um 2,6 km frá Suðurstrandarvegi. Miðað við fyrstu upplýsingar er sprungan um 200 m löng. Hraun virðist renna hægt.

Posted by Veðurstofa Íslands on Friday, March 19, 2021

The glow from the lava could be seen from the outskirts of Iceland's capital, Reykjavík, which is about 32km away.

The Department of Emergency Management said it was not anticipating evacuations because the volcano is in a remote valley, about 2.5km from the nearest road.

Initial aerial footage showed a relatively small eruption so far, with two streams of lava running in opposite directions. Photo / AP

The Fagradals Mountain volcano had been dormant for 6000 years, and the Reykjanes Peninsula hadn't seen an eruption of any volcano in 781 years.

There had been signs of a possible eruption recently, with earthquakes occurring daily for the past three weeks, but volcanologists were still taken by surprise because the seismic activity had calmed down before the eruption.

A volcanic eruption has begun in Fagradalsfjall on the Reykjanes peninsula. We are monitoring the situation closely and as of now it is not considered a threat to surrounding towns. We ask people to keep away from the immediate area and stay safe. https://t.co/iIACfCc31E

— Katrín Jakobsdóttir (@katrinjak) March 19, 2021