Volcanic hazard from Iceland: analysis and implications of the Eyjafjallajökull eruption
This report examines the Eyjafjallajökull eruption, its impact on aviation and implications for the future, in the expectation of further activity in Iceland. In this report, the UCL Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction provides an integrated analysis covering volcanology, geophysics, rock and ice physics, meteorology, statistics, mechanical engineering, systems engineering, transport engineering, hazard and risk communication, law and ethics.
It addresses the following questions:
- What are phreatomagmatic eruptions?
- Is the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull unusual?
- Are meteorological conditions abnormal?
- Could the impact of the eruption on European airspace have been predicted?
- Has the response to the eruption been appropriate and effective?
- Why is volcanic ash a problem for aircraft?
- Is there a safe concentration of volcanic ash in the atmosphere that aircraft can fly in?
- How long is the disruption likely to last?
- Will neighbouring Katla erupt?
- Are we likely to see this sort of event again?
- How can we better prepare for such events?