Bogoslof Island Volcano Erupts For The Third Time In A Week

A volcano has erupted in the Alaskan island of Bogoslof, which is located in the Aleutian islands, in a chain of volcanic areas in the Bering Sea. The Alaska Volcano Observatory noted that a coast guard was in the area when they witnessed an ash plume from an eruption that lasted about an hour -- ejecting with it lava and fragmented material.

"The plume was estimated at below 30,000 feet," volcanologist Robert McGimsey shared. "Unalaska Island, about 62 miles from the volcano, is the closest populated area, but the winds were blowing any ash away from inhabited areas."

CBS News reported that the eruption still prompted the observatory to issue its highest level for aviation alert levels. Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Allen Kenitzer said airlines are rerouting flights around the plume, but no delays have been reported.

No ashes are predicted to make it to the mainland due to stormy conditions. However, CDA News noted that the attempts of volcanologists to receive signals from monitoring stations near the island were interrupted because of a major storm -- the island has been known to change its shape since its first cartographical record back in the 1700s, caused not only by frequent eruptive activity but also due to the energetic wave action on the island itself.

The National Weather Service has already been looking at the area of concern west of the Nunivak Islands. The aviation desk has been tracking weather issues related to Bogoslof since the first eruption on Dec. 21, including dozens of lightning strikes that are said to be monitored very closely.

Anchorage-based meteorologist Michael Kutz also said that a trio of low-pressure systems in the Aleutians could form a single system headed north of Ninuvak Island by Christmas, and the stormy conditions have been keeping Bogoslof from falling on land. Alaska Dispatch News reported Kutz to have said, "(There's) one system that's creeping up on Dutch Harbor and a second low out near Adak and a third near the end of the chain. If things were further to the south, like they had been earlier this week, we'd start seeing (ash) dragging over into the Aleutian chain and then moving toward us."