On Wednesday morning, the ground rumbled. Molten lava spewed from a volcano. It is on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula. The volcano stayed quiet for centuries. But it has erupted seven times since December 2023. 

This time, the volcano created a nearly two-mile crack in the ground. Planes can still fly over the area without any trouble. But authorities watch gas emissions. Breathing the gases and ash can make humans and animals sick. Officials warn the residents of Grindavík. People had to evacuate that town last year when the volcano first erupted. 

“Grindavík is not [currently] in danger,” says Magnús Tumi Guðmundsson. He’s a professor of geophysics. “It is unlikely that this crack will get any longer, although nothing can be ruled out.”

Lava also reached the pipeline that supplies the peninsula with hot water. But the pipes were built to withstand lava flow. That’s because Icelanders are used to surprise volcanic activity. 

Iceland sits above a volcanic hot spot in the North Atlantic Ocean. The country usually has about one eruption every four to five years. 

What makes a volcano erupt? A volcano forms when tectonic plates move under one another. They cause the ground to buckle. Far below the volcano, magma (molten rock) begins to rise through the Earth’s crust. The magma gets caught inside underground chambers. But it’s full of lightweight gas. The magma will stay underground for only so many years. Eventually it bursts to the surface. (It’s a bit like shaken soda shooting from a bottle.) Scientists call that molten rock “lava.” 

Lava is dangerous when it’s hot. But it’s full of minerals such as magnesium and potassium. Once the lava cools, those minerals make the soil richer. An eruption seems like a strange event. But it’s one of the ways that God feeds the Earth. 

Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them. — Psalm 111:2