Canary Volcano Could Create a New Island in the Atlantic Ocean

IMAGE  (Desiree Martin/AFP/Getty Images) 

A volcano erupting beneath the ocean just off the island of El Herrio is just a couple hundred feet beneath the surface of the Atlantic according to scientists from Spain's National Geographic Institute. There are signs that lava is starting to pile up at the mouth of the eruption and the top of the eruption it is getting very close to the surface.  The ongoing eruption could lead to the creation of a new island.

A similar island creating event occurred in between 1963 and 1965 as the volcano beneath the surface near the southern coast of Iceland.  Surtsy grew to an area of 2.7 square miles as material released by the volcano continued to pile up.  By 1967, enough material was released to allow Surtsey to become more or less a permanent island despite being battered by the wind and waves of the harsh North Atlantic.

Time will tell whether enough lava, ash and rock will be released by the volcano off the Canary Islands to add another one.  However, the signs are looking good for island formation, as there is still steadily increasing earthquake activity beneath the volcano. More earthquake are occurring nearby and deep beneath the volcano.  This is a sign that magma is still moving upwards toward the site, and a much larger eruption may occur in the near future.