Large Quake Reported Near Bárðarbunga Volcano

One of the largest quakes since the famed volcano stopped erupting has been recorded near Bárðarbunga.

RÚV reports that a quake measuring a 4 on the Richter scale was recorded near the northern end of Bárðarbunga at about 5:00 Wednesday morning.

Einar Hjörleifsson, a natural disaster expert at the Icelandic Met Office, told reporters the quake is amongst the largest that have been recorded since the volcano stopped erupting in early 2015. The past week has been relatively quiet at the site, he said, but over the course of this day many tremours were recorded. He emphasised that the quakes in themselves do not necessarily mean that another volcanic eruption is on the way.

This is not for the first time in recent months that tremours have been recorded near Bárðarbunga. As reported last May, a quake measuring 4.4 was recorded near the volcano, followed by several aftershocks.

While scientists do not yet have reason to believe another eruption is imminent, they are still monitoring the area closely for increased activity. The Grapevine will keep readers updated in the event an eruption occurs.