A volcano near Iceland’s capital erupted for the tenth time in three years late Wednesday, spewing lava and smoke, the country’s meteorological office said.

Iceland, with a population of about 400,000, lies on the fault line between the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates, making it a seismic hotspot with geysers, hot springs and dozens of volcanoes.

As magma accumulated underground, authorities had warned of imminent volcanic activity on the Reykjanes peninsula, about 30 km (20 miles) southwest of the capital Reykjavik, where the most recent eruption only ended on September 6.

The outbreaks, known as fissure eruptions on the Reykjanes peninsula, did not directly affect the capital and did not cause significant ash to be dispersed into the stratosphere, thus avoiding disruption of air traffic.

After being dormant for 800 years, geological systems in the region became active again in 2021, and eruptions have occurred with increasing frequency since then; The latest outbreak is the sixth outbreak so far in 2024.

The nearby fishing town of Grindavik, which was home to around 4,000 residents before the evacuation order in December last year, remains largely abandoned due to the periodic threat of lava flows.

Icelandic authorities have erected barriers to divert streams of molten rock away from the town as well as infrastructure such as a nearby power plant and hotels and the Blue Lagoon, a spa resort with large natural pools.

Scientists have warned that Reykjanes will likely experience repeated volcanic eruptions for decades, possibly even centuries.

But the eruptions are not expected to cause the level of disruption seen with the eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in 2010, which sent ash clouds across Europe and grounded nearly 100,000 flights worldwide.