Story highlights
- The alert over the potential eruption of Bardarbunga volcano is lowered
- Scientists conclude a subglacial eruption did not occur
- All Iceland airports are open and all restrictions on air travel have been lifted
Iceland's Meteorological Office on Sunday lowered the aviation threat level from the Bardarbunga volcano from the highest level, red, down to orange.
With the lowering of the aviation threat level, all restrictions on air travel in Iceland have now been canceled and all airports in the country are open, according to the government.
On Saturday, the agency raised the alert level for Bardarbunga to red, which means an eruption is imminent or in progress. But the country's Civil Protection Department said on its website Sunday that a subglacial eruption, thought to be under way Saturday, did not occur.
The department said the seismic activity recorded under the ice cap of a glacier there could be something else, although an eruption is still possible. Seismic activity continues at the volcano, with two large earthquakes hitting overnight. Both measured over a 5 magnitude, the Civil Protection Department said.
Scientists have noticed an increase in seismic activity over the past seven years around the volcano, located in the northwestern region of the Vatnajokull glacier, one of Europe's largest glaciers, the Meteorological Office said.
Icelandic volcano threatens air travel 02:27
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Photos: Iceland: Bouncing back on tourism boom
Bouncing back – Iceland's spectacular tourism growth is all the more remarkable given the enormous financial challenges it faced as recently as 2008. Back then the IMF stepped in to prop up the country's ailing economy.
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Photos: Iceland: Bouncing back on tourism boom
Hot springs – Tourists bathe in the famous Blue Lagoon just outside Reykjavik. The natural hot-water springs are one of the country's leading tourist attractions.
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Photos: Iceland: Bouncing back on tourism boom
Northern lights – Lucky visitors can also spot the northern lights whilst glaciers and geysers are a common site through the country's sparsely populated rural hinterland.
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Photos: Iceland: Bouncing back on tourism boom
Ash cloud – Ash billows from the Eyjafjoell volcano in May 2010. The eruption disrupted 100,000 flights but failed to dent Iceland's long-term tourism growth.
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Photos: Iceland: Bouncing back on tourism boom
Planning for the future – Iceland's president, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, says he hopes Iceland will be welcoming upwards of two million tourists a year by 2020.
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The level dropped a little after the eruption of another volcano at the same glacier, Grimsvotn, in 2011, but has since picked up again.
According to the Smithsonian Institute Global Volcanism Program, Bardarbunga last erupted in 1910.
If it should blow its top again, it could be bad news for travelers.
Volcanic ash can be a serious hazard to aircraft, reducing visibility, damaging flight controls and ultimately causing jet engines to fail.
