A volcanic eruption in Eritrea is disrupting East Africa air travel. Recent images released by NASA show plumes of smoke billowing up from the Nabro volcano, and this plume of ash has quickly spread across the Horn of Africa , disrupting airline schedules and sparking health concerns. Nabro is a volcano in far southeastern Eritrea, near the border with Ethiopia and the city-state of Djibouti.

The volcano was long-dormant, but suddenly erupted last week. The ash plume is currently spreading westward toward Sudan, and has prompted US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to cut short a visit to Ethiopia where she addressed the African Union. Several major airlines have canceled flights to destinations in the region as well. Addis Ababa's Bole airport remains open, and only Ethiopian Airlines flights to northern parts of the country and Djibouti have been canceled.