(Article Posted - November 2, 2004 - 01:05:11 GMT)

REYKAJVIK, Iceland (AP) - A volcano erupted in a remote area of Iceland
on
Monday, setting off tremors across the area and prompting officials to
warn
pilots to avoid flying through gasses being emitted by the blast.

No evacuations were needed in the unpopulated area around Grimsvotn
mountain
in eastern Iceland, the Meteorological Office said, but visual
confirmation
of the damage being done was impossible because heavy winds and rains
reduced
visibility in the area.

The eruption was believed to have been caused by expansion of a lake
underneath the Vatnajokull glacier.

"The water is under extreme pressure from the glacier. We believe it
could
open a part of the Grimsvotn mountain, causing the release of some
magma,
though this cannot be confirmed without visual identification," said
Oli Thor
Arnarsson at the Meteorological Office.

His office issued the warning to pilots on Monday evening.

Grimsvotn last erupted six years ago. It also erupted in 1995 and 1993,
causing flooding.

The mountain lies on the Atlantic Rift, the meeting of the Euro and
American
continental plates. The three major volcanoes of Iceland - Hekla, Katla
and
Grimsvotn - lie on the same fault line. Hekla last erupted in 2000.

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The Associated Press All Rights Reserved
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Vatnajökull, Iceland: Click here to view full image (3190 kb)
earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsr...s.php3
Image provided by the USGS EROS Data Center Satellite Systems Branch.