A cloud of sulphur dioxide has passed over Britain after a volcanic eruption hundreds of miles away in Iceland.
The gas, which can also be produced by burning coal and oil, may cause sore throats, eye irritation or flu-like symptoms. Prolonged direct exposure has been linked to more severe health issues, including asthma and chronic bronchitis.
This SO2 plume, which was triggered by the eruption near Grindavik on Thursday, started to come over the country at around 4am on Sunday but forecasters said air pollution levels stayed low.
A Met Office spokesperson said: "A sulphur dioxide plume which originated from the volcanoin Iceland has been crossing the UK high up in the atmosphere and will clear to the southeast in the coming hours.
"Impacts have been low from this sulphur dioxide, as it is high in the atmosphere and is having littleinfluence on ground-level air quality. Small concentrations at surface level mean that the air pollution levels remain low.
"Air pollution is currently Low, and expected to remain that way for the whole of the UK today.”
They said they would continue to “monitor” the situation.
The latest eruption is the sixth time since December a volcano has erupted in the area - south of the country's capital Reykjavik.
The Icelandic Meteorological Office said it followed a series of earthquakes.
The nearby fishing village of Grindavik was evacuated but it is not known how many people were in the area as most of its nearly 4,000 residents left in November.
It comes as forecasters said some summer sun should be on the way despite hints of autumn nipping into the August bank holiday weekend.
The Met Office said there had been “a taste of autumn” as temperatures fell widely into single figures overnight ahead of a fresh Sunday morning.
Met Office meteorologist Craig Snell said Sunday “started on a sunny and bright note for a lot of the UK” as clouds moved in over Northern Ireland and western Scotland.
The area of cloud and rain is set to spread eastwards and limit the sunshine.
In an online forecast, he added: “The heaviest and most persistent rain will be across parts of Northern Ireland, southern Scotland and northern England and for all of us it will be a windy afternoon.
“Potentially come the end of the afternoon we could just see some gales along the Irish Sea coast.
“And with the cloud, wind and rain combined, for most of us it can be feeling fairly chilly for the time of year.
“But down towards the south east where we hang on to the sunshine for the longest we will just climb up to about 20C or 21C.”
Following the bank holiday weekend for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, warmer conditions are expected to develop during next week in central and eastern areas, with the possibility of some hot weather for a time.
