Toxic Gas from Iceland Volcano Moving Across Europe: Experts Warn of Ozone Impact

Space News ,World :-  A big cloud of poisonous gas is moving across northern Europe from a volcano eruption in Iceland. This gas isn't likely to make people sick, but it might harm the ozone hole above the Arctic, scientists say.

Last week, a volcano in Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula erupted for the fourth time in a few months. This eruption made the biggest crack yet and let out a lot of lava. The lava almost reached a town called Grindavík, but luckily, it didn't reach the sea. If it did, it could have let out a gas called hydrochloric acid, which is very dangerous. 

Instead, the volcano released sulfur dioxide, a gas that can be harmful in large amounts. On March 17, it was spitting out about 110 pounds (50 kilograms) of sulfur dioxide every second. People working at a nearby power plant had to leave because of the gas, and locals were told to stay indoors.

Since March 18, the amount of sulfur dioxide being released has gone down. But a European program called Copernicus has been watching the gas. They found that a big chunk of it formed a 3-mile-tall (5 kilometers) cloud and is now moving towards other countries in northern Europe.

The cloud has already passed over the U.K. and is heading towards Scandinavia. But scientists don't think it will cause any problems with the air we breathe or the climate.

However, it's still important to keep an eye on sulfur dioxide because it can react with the ozone in our atmosphere. Ozone helps protect us from the sun's harmful rays. In the past, a big eruption in Tonga made a huge hole in the ozone layer above Antarctica.

Scientists think these eruptions in Iceland might be the start of many more over the next few centuries. If that happens, more sulfur dioxide could reach the Arctic, making the ozone holes even bigger.

"We need to keep watching what's happening in Iceland," says Laurence Rouil, who directs the Copernicus program.