Volcanologists have completed the installation of a new monitoring network on Skarvøy, a remote and uninhabited volcanic island in the North Atlantic that last erupted around 70 years ago. Over ten days, a team of eight scientists set up six seismometers, three gas sensors and two cameras that will send data by satellite to an observatory on the mainland.
The island has shown signs of increased activity in recent years, including small earthquakes beneath its summit and warmer ground in a crater on its northern flank. None of the readings suggests an eruption is imminent, the scientists said, but until now the island was monitored by only a single ageing instrument that failed repeatedly in winter storms.
Working in difficult conditions
Getting equipment on to Skarvøy was a challenge in itself. There is no harbour, so the team and around four tonnes of kit were landed by small boat on a boulder beach and carried up steep slopes. Solar panels, batteries and wind turbines were installed at each station to keep them running through the dark winter months.
Dr Ingvar Solheim, who led the expedition for the North Atlantic Volcano Observatory, said the new network would allow scientists to spot changes in days rather than months. "The island speaks to us through small earthquakes and changes in its gases," he said. "Before, we were only catching a few words. Now we should hear the whole conversation."
Monitoring a quiet volcano is like checking the health of someone who feels fine. It is exactly when you want a good baseline.
Although nobody lives on Skarvøy, ships and fishing boats pass close by and an eruption could send ash into busy flight paths across the ocean. Scientists also hope the data will help them understand how volcanoes of this type behave in the years before they erupt.
The observatory plans to publish live readings from the network on its website from next month. A return visit to service the instruments is scheduled for the summer, when the weather makes landing easier.