"Iceland volcano: Authorities issue aviation red alert after massive volcano begins erupting under glacier"
Photo: Hundreds of people were evacuated from the Bardarbunga volcano area in Iceland after high seismic activity (Reuters)
"Lava erupting from a massive volcano under an Icelandic glacier has prompted authorities to issue a red alert to the aviation industry amid fears of significant ash emissions.Iceland's meteorological office has warned of a small eruption at the Bardarbunga volcano under the Dyngjijokull glacier.
The region surrounding the volcano has already been evacuated after days of heightened seismic activity.
Airspace over the site has been closed, but all airports remain open according to authorities.
The red alert is the highest warning on the country's five-point scale.
Iceland's Met Office said a team of scientists have been flying in a surveillance plane to monitor seismic activity.
"There has been intense earthquake activity at the volcano. We cannot exclude that this could be a big eruption," scientist Kristin Jonsdottir said.
But Met Office seismologist Martin Hensch said there appears to be little risk of an ash cloud at present."
Thanks to ABC NEWS for this current article. Retrieved on the 25th of Aug 2014 at 6:23 am