2010 Eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull

Eyjafjallajökull is one of Iceland’s smaller ice caps, located in the far south of the island. It is situated to the north of Skógar and to the west of the larger ice cap, Mýrdalsjökull. Eyjafjallajökull covers the caldera of a volcano, with a summit elevation of 1,666 meters (5,466 ft). The volcano has erupted relatively frequently since the last ice age. Before 2010, the most recent major event was in 1920. The 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruptions weren’t the largest ever recorded, but the subsequent ash clouds that were released caused an enormous disruption to air travel across western and northern Europe over a six day period in April 2010. It was the highest level of air travel disruption since the Second World War.
The most severe explosion occurred on April 14, 2010, and resulted in an estimated 250 million cubic meters (330,000,000 cu yd) of ejected tephra. The ash plume rose to a height of approximately 9 kilometers (30,000 ft). The subsequent air traffic closures caused millions of passengers to be stranded, not only in Europe, but across the world. Between the months of April and May, 2010, various regions, including Ireland, Scotland, the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, northern Italy and Austria, had to completely close their airspace. The volcano was able to inject its ash plume directly into the jet stream. The ash was then carried over Europe into some of the busiest airspace in the world.
Previous eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull have historically been followed by eruptions of its larger neighbor, Katla. In the past 1,000 years, all three known eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull have triggered a subsequent Katla event, often times within months of each other. Katla is one of the largest and more dangerous volcanoes in Iceland. On April 20, 2010, Icelandic President Ólafur Grímsson said “the time for Katla to erupt is coming close, we [Iceland] have prepared. It is high time for European governments and airline authorities all over Europe and the world to start planning for the eventual Katla eruption.” The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimated that the airline industry worldwide lost €148 million (US$200 million, GB£130 million) a day during the air travel disruptions.