Fri 11 February 2022:
Mount Etna, Europe’s largest and most active volcano, erupted for the first time this year overnight into Friday, sending ash and clouds into the sky in a gigantic column as high as five miles.
Italy’s National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology has confirmed that an eruption took place on Thursday night. Incredible images show the moment the night sky was lit up with red molten lava as ash and smoke was sent eight kilometres high. The eruption centred on the volcano’s southeastern crater, at a height of around 2,900 metres and was seen from as far away as Malta.
Italy’s Mount Etna volcano erupts for first time this year.#volcano #Italy pic.twitter.com/aBNfeWF56e
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 11, 2022
Three streams of pyroclastic material formed from the crater, with the first two moving a few hundred feet towards the Valle del Bove, and the third heading south at approximately the same distance, according to the institute.
The burst of Etna activity reportedly stopped around 01:00 a. m. local time (00:00 GMT).
The volcano had numerous eruptions and spikes in activity over the years, but the last major eruption that necessitated evacuations took place in 1992.
Etna is one of the world’s most active volcanoes and is in an almost constant state of activity.
The 3,330-metre high volcano can burst into spectacular action several times a year, spewing lava and ash high over the Mediterranean island of Sicily.
Sicily’s government estimated last July that 300,000 tonnes of ash had been cleaned up from its eruptions.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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