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Iceland's latest volcano proves sequels stink: Grímsvötn a bigger letdown thanthe Rapture
The Grímsvötn volcano two days ago
The Eyjafjallajokull volcano last year
It's time once again to play name that unpronounceable Icelandic volcano.
In a replay from last spring, the island nation is again spitting an enormous cloud of ash into the air, and once again it's affecting air travel in Europe, causing cancelations and delays from Scotland to Germany. But unlike 2010, when Eyjafjallajökull shut down airports across the continent and cost the airlines $1.7 billion over the course of a week, this volcano just can't catch a break when it comes to catching the world's attention.
Even though Grímsvötn is a bigger volcano, the smoke erupting is stickier and courser, which means that although it would cause more damage, it also wouldn't travel as far. And Europe drew a lucky hand with the weather, with winds from the southwest pushing the ash cloud north over the arctic rather than letting it drift over much of the mainland.
Though flights were cancelled over Scotland, Ireland, Denmark and more on Tuesday and Wednesday, by the time the cloud hit Germany the airport closures only lasted several hours, not several days, and the weekend travel forecast looks clear. That's partly because the authorities have revised their precautions after last year's disaster, allowing higher tolerance of ash particles and only forbidding flight in certain thick, high density cloud areas called red zones.
Sure, it's a headache if you're a Danish air traffic controller, but even for the European news it pales in comparison to the Obama presidential visit. (Seriously, there is no problem that guy can't solve!) Even the volcano name, Grímsvötn, lacks the multisyllabic panache of Eyjafjallajökull that made the volcano a hit in late night comedy monologues.
And frankly, volcano, if Jay Leno doesn't think you're funny, you're toast.
So in a world that's been rocked in the past year by economies on the brink of collapse, the largest oil spill in history, deadly tornadoes, a nuclear disaster and the return of Jennifer Lopez to music, if Iceland and it's volcanoes want attention, they're going to have to try a little harder.
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Rendering courtesy of SA Partnerships