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Volcano in Alaska Aleutian islands settling down

Posted at 7:56 PM, Dec 30, 2016
and last updated 2016-12-30 19:56:53-05

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A volcano on a remote island in Alaska’s Aleutian chain has simmered down after erupting and prompting an aviation alert.

The Alaska Volcano Observatory said Friday the Bogoslof volcano sent an ash plume about 20,000 feet in the air in its eighth explosion detected since Dec. 16.

The latest eruption caused the observatory to issue its highest alert for aircraft, but the Federal Aviation Administration says the eruption has had no effect on flight operations.

Observatory geologist Chris Waythomas says the volcano has quieted down, but the alert remains in place.

He says most of the volcano’s vent is underwater, which adds steam to ash plumes when magma is dislodged.

The volcano began erupting shortly before midnight Thursday. It is located on an island in the Bering Sea about 850 miles southwest of Anchorage.

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