Iceland reopens airspace after volcanic eruption

Iceland reopened airspace and lowered its aviation warning to orange, the second highest level, after the amount of airborne ash material from a volcanic eruption in the center of the country appeared to be minimal, the Ministry of Civil Protection said Friday.
The authorities said that radar has so far failed to detect any volcanic ash above the current eruption and there are no signs of significant explosive activity, Wall Street Journal reported.
A coast guard aircraft has been monitoring the situation Friday, the authorities added.
The eruption is north of the Bardarbunga volcano, which scientists have been watching closely for more than a week after tremors in the area raised fears that an eruption could be imminent.
Concerns have been mounting about an event of the scale of the eruption of Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull in 2010, which sent ash into the atmosphere and led to a six-day closure of European airspace.
That closure cost airlines about $1.8 billion in lost revenues and affected the travel of 10 million passengers, according to the airline industry association IATA.
Bardarbunga is part of a large volcanic system under the large Vatnajokull glacier.
Authorities evacuated residents from areas around the glacier last week fearing that an eruption could cause ice in the area to melt and lead to flooding.
The closure of airspace in the area Friday follows a similar incident on Saturday, when a small volcanic eruption was detected under the Dyngjuj?kull glacier. Icelandic officials reopened airspace on Sunday.