Ash Cloud Heading West and South West

State news channel RÚV reports that the Eyjafjallajökull ash cloud is now moving in a west and southwesterly direction. The Icelandic Meteorological Office has predicted rain for much of the work week, though, so even if the ash cloud were visible in the capital area – which is likely wouldn’t be – we wouldn’t be able to see it. So don’t rush out to buy the canned food and bottled water just yet. Ash mist is, however, likely to appear west and southwest of the volcano. Whether it will extend all the way to Reykjavík remains to be seen.
In other volcano news, the “fatal area” of the volcano appears to have decreased slightly. As of last week, there have been reported sounds of blasts in the area, and the volcano shows no signs of dying out.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office also reports that “the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull has apparently entered a new phase with less interaction of magma with ice and melt water. It seems that the ice cauldrons over the eruption site have coalesced to form a larger cauldron. In spite of magma splatters, no lava flow has been detected yet. … The viscosity of the magma from Eyjafjallajökull is higher than on Fimmvörðuháls and this enhances the explosive sound effect which can be heard over long distances.”
Flights are still being delayed and cancelled now and then, so it’s advisable to call your airline ahead of time if you have a flight booked. And don’t worry about being trapped in Iceland. It’s a nice country, I’ve lived here for ten years. But if you absolutely must leave the country, and you find there are no flights out, you can always drive to Seyðisfjörður, take the ferry to Denmark, and then catch a flight from the mainland. The Grapevine has heard of many people doing this, and it seems like fun to us.