AIRLINES have been warned ash from a new volcano erupting in Iceland could cause disruption, with the debris expected to reach Scotland tomorrow.
This time it’s not the Eyjafjallajokull volcano -- which caused massive disruption to flights for a week last April and left 10 million passengers stranded -- but another called the Grimsvotn volcano.
Ash could reach northern parts of the country by Tuesday and parts of the rest of Britain, France and Spain by Thursday or Friday if the eruption continues at the same intensity.
Iceland closed its main international airport and cancelled domestic flights on Sunday as the powerful Grimsvotn sent a plume of ash, smoke and steam 12 miles into the air.
It lies under the uninhabited Vatnajokull glacier 120 miles from Reykjavik, and began erupting on Saturday for the first time since 2004.
The warnings are based on the latest five-day weather forecasts, but are being treated cautiously because of uncertainties over the way the volcano will behave and interact with the weather.
With winds currently blowing the ash northwards, authorities said there was little risk of any further disruption to European or transatlantic airspace over the next 24 hours.
But as low-pressure weather systems move into Europe and Scandinavia, there are concerns that northwesterly winds capable of dispersing ash towards the rest of Europe will pick up.
Airlines were told to brace for the possible further spread of ash later in the week during a conference call with weather experts and officials responsible for European airspace.
The news is likely to leave Scots holidaymakers worried about disruption to their travel plans. Last year Scottish airports were among the worst hit, though travellers were stranded at airports all over the world as flights were cancelled amid fears over safety.
University of Iceland geophysicist Magnus Tumi Gudmundsson said the new Grimsvotn eruption was 10 times as powerful as the same volcano’s last one, which lasted for several days and briefly disrupted international flights.
He said the eruption was Grimsvotn’s largest for 100 years.
However, another geophysicist, Pall Einarsson, said last year’s Eyjafjallajokull eruption was a rare event and Grimsvotn would likely have much less effect on international air traffic.
He said: “The ash in Eyjafjallajokull was persistent or unremitting and fine-grained. The ash in Grimsvotn is more coarse and not as likely to cause danger as it falls to the ground faster and doesn’t stay as long in the air.”
As reported in The Herald earlier this year scientists found aviation authorities were right to ground jets during last year’s eruption over safety fears.
Scotland’s airports were some of the worst affected as they were closest to the ash cloud.
The closures cost an estimated £1.3 billion to £2.2bn.
Some critics questioned whether it was justified, but the scientific report published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concludes it was.
Researchers analysed samples of ash from the volcano and found they were capable of causing an air disaster.
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