Iceland volcano LIVE: Reykjavik is at risk of gas pollution from volcano as power of the eruption decreases

Iceland's capital could be at risk from toxic fumes that are currently billowing from a volcano that dramatically erupted late on Monday, the Nordic country's meteorological office has warned.

• The eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula just north of the evacuated town of Grindavik began last night at around 10.17pm after an earthquake swarm, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said, referring to a series of small shakes.
• It has seen 200 cubic metres of lava spilling out from fissures in the earth every second, and blasted semi-molten rock into the air in a spectacular show of Earth's power in the land known for fire and ice.
• Live-streamed footage of the eruption showed molten lava bursting into the sky from fissures in the ground, surrounded by a spreading lava field and billowing clouds of red smoke lit up by the flames.
• While Iceland's Met Office said the power of the eruption itself was decreasing on Tuesday, it warned locals that gas pollution could still occur in the area of the capital Reykjavik late on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning.

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Holidaymakers watched the gates of hell open up beneath them as they took-off and landed in Iceland during the nation's volcanic eruption that sent molten lava spewing into the black sky from fissures in the ground.

Astonishing footage showed holidaymakers bound for Suomi in Finland flying over the volcano, with rivers of orange magma flowing over Iceland in a spectacular show of Earth's power in the land known for fire and ice.

Other tourists on board an Icelander flight from Keflavik airport to Berlin and another to Copenhagen were this morning met with the same astonishing views, with the molten lava seen spewing into the air from below and snaking its way across the Reykjanes peninsula.

Dramatic video and pictures also showed British tourists stranded on the runway of Reykjavik's international Keflavik airport, with the holidaymakers shouting 'Oh my God' as they watched the magma and flames turn the sky red.

Read our full coverage by clicking the link below.

The power of the Icelandic volcano that erupted late on Monday was decreasing on Tuesday, the country's meteorological office said in a statement.

Gas pollution could still occur in the area of the capital Reykjavik late on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning, it added.

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The government said flights were unlikely to be affected by the volcano, quashing international travel concerns lingering after the chaos that resulted from the ash cloud caused by an eruption on the north Atlantic island in 2010.

The eruption late on Monday on the Reykjanes peninsula in southwest Iceland spewed lava and smoke more than 100 metres (330 feet) into the air after weeks of intense seismic activity.

'The eruption does not present a threat to life,' an Icelandic government statement said.

'There are no disruptions to flights to and from Iceland and international flight corridors remain open.'

Authorities last month evacuated the nearly 4,000 inhabitants of the fishing town of Grindavik about 40 km (25 miles) southwest of capital city Reykjavik.

Read our full coverage of the volcanic eruption in Iceland by clicking the link below.

Magnus Tumi Gudmundsson, a scientist who flew over the site on Tuesday morning onboard an coast guard research flight, told Icelandic broadcaster RUV that he estimates twice as much lava had already spewed than the entire monthlong eruption on the peninsula this summer.

Gudmundsson said the eruption was expected to continue decreasing in intensity but that scientists have no idea how long it could last. 'It can be over in a week, or it could take quite a bit longer,' he said.

The Icelandic meteorological office has said the intensity of the eruption has stabilised, but was unable to estimate how long it would last.

'We now wait to see what the forces of nature have in store,' President Guðni Thorlacius Johannesson said. He added that protecting lives and infrastructure was the priority.

'It is not clear what havoc it can cause, but now we rely on our scientific staff as well as all those who have to carry out inspections and other operations.

'Above all, we protect human life, but always protect structures to the best of our ability,' writes Guðni on Facebook.

'As early as possible, I send warm greetings to Grindvíking and those who are currently working on the ground. And, of course, people should follow all the recommendations of the National Defence at this time of danger.'

Since October, thousands of earthquakes had been detected on the Reykjanes peninsula, a possible precursor to an impending volcanic eruption.

• Roughly 4,000 people were evacuated from Grindavik, a fishing port around 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Reykjavik, on November 11 after scientists determined that a tunnel of magma was shifting beneath them.
• Residents said the series of small earthquakes - sometimes hundreds per day - had damaged roads and buildings.
• And after a series of small earthquakes, the volcano erupted last night on the Reykjanes peninsula.

Vidir Reynisson, head of the Department of Civil Protection, urged people to stay away from the area, telling a local television station: 'This is no tourist eruption'.

But thrill-seekers defied the orders and ventured near the site of the huge volcano eruption in Iceland.

Astonishing pictures - including one of scores of cars queuing to get close to the area - show people trying to witness Mother Nature's work first-hand.

Volcanologist Porvaldur Póroarson told Icelandic newspaper MBL.is that this volcanic eruption is 'different' to what we have seen before.

The eruption north of Grindavik is the largest that has occurred on the Reykjanes Peninsula since 2019.

'This is a different creature than we have seen in Fagradalsfjall,' Poroarson said of the eruption that began last night.

Good morning from MailOnline's team. After weeks of earthquakes, a huge volcano has erupted in Iceland. Here's what you need to know.

• The eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula, just north of the fishing town Grindavik, began Monday at around 10.17pm after an earthquake swarm, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said, referring to a series of small shakes.
• The meteorological office estimated that the volcano had opened a fissure about four kilometres (2.5 miles) long, with the southern end just three kilometres away from Grindavik.
• Live-streamed footage of the eruption showed glowing orange jets of lava spewing from a gash in the ground, surrounded by billowing clouds of red smoke.
• For weeks, the Nordic country had been anticipating an eruption on the peninsula southwest of the capital after intense earthquake activity, which prompted authorities to evacuate thousands of people and close the Blue Lagoon geothermal spa famed for its turquoise waters.