The volcanic fissure that opened up in Iceland early Wednesday has now expanded, and stretches further north than at any time since 2023.Lava and toxic gas continue to spill from the latest eruption on the Reykjanes Peninsula.

Iceland's Reykjanes peninsula experienced its ninth eruption since late 2023 on July 16, 2025, prompting evacuations at the Blue Lagoon and Grindavik. This latest event, deemed relatively small, follows a series of eruptions that began in March 2021 after eight centuries of dormancy.

The concept isn’t hypothetical. Tephra layers in Icelandic peat cores show that eruptions soared six-fold between 12,000 and 10,000 years ago —exactly when