Etna awakens Mt. Etna on the island of Sicily is one of the world’s most active volcanoes, sur

Etna awakensMt. Etna on the island of Sicily is one of the world’s most active volcanoes, surpassed only by Kilauea in terms of its total volcanic output. It also puts on one of the best shows in the world.The volcano has been quiet for several months after starting a series of larger eruptions in 2014; the most recent explosive activity reported from Etna dates back to January of this year and lava flows were present on the slopes as recently as May. However, in early November, seismometers on the mountain began measuring tremor – a low frequency shaking commonly produced as molten rock moves upwards through the crust.Mount Etna can be accurately described as a series of distinct volcanic complexes nested on top of each other. The volcano’s summit contains 4-5 distinct craters (depending on how you count them), each of which shows different activity patterns probably indicating some independent plumbing systems within the volcano. In addition to these craters, a number of volcanic fissures and vents lower on the mountain’s slopes also can serve as the center of eruptions.The November shaking was associated with increased gas emission and then small Strombolian eruptions from the Voragine crater, one of the craters at the summit. Strombolian eruptions occur from a combination of gas and molten rock moving up the volcano’s throat; as a bubble of gas moves upwards it expands due to lower pressure until it eventually bursts, throwing molten rock into the air in a small eruption.That series of eruptions has been followed by some of Etna’s most spectacular fireworks in years. On December 3, the Voragine crater hosted the first of now several paroxysms – sudden bursts of explosive activity. This eruption spat lava columns and ash several kilometers into the air, producing this spectacular show for the nearby inhabitants on the ground.Several reports have stated this was Etna’s first eruption since 2013. In case you’ve seen any of those: to be more specific, this was the first major eruption at this specific crater since 2013, others have been active since then. This crater has hosted similar violent outbursts of lava fountaining, including in 1998 and 1999.Video/still frames taken by a photographer at the site also show that this eruption produced volcanic lightning, a spectacular phenomenon that occurs from static electricity building up in a rising ash cloud. If you haven’t seen it yet, head over to our blog to see that footage (http://tmblr.co/Zyv2Js1zK-1t5).The first photo of the lava fountaining was taken by local resident Nico de Messina and shared with his permission. The second shows the cloud of Etna’s ash as photographed from the window of a plane by Grace LaRosa, again shared with permission. The ash cloud was so big it was easily picked up by satellites such as NASA’s Aqua satellite; the heat and sulfur dioxide released by this eruption were also monitored as they moved across the Mediterranean (http://tmblr.co/Zyv2Js1zLf7jc, http://tmblr.co/Zyv2Js1zL9m-k, http://tmblr.co/Zyv2Js1zI-eUP). Dark ash from this eruption has fallen throughout the area, coating surfaces in nearby cities. Additional eruptions have occurred from this crater since the initial outbreak, and the eruption is ongoing.-JBBImage credit: Nico de Messina (with permission), Grace LaRosa, NASA Modishttps://twitter.com/nico7095/status/672527596589027328https://twitter.com/gracelarosaRead/see more:https://www.instagram.com/p/-4KcOmtmQd/http://bit.ly/1jE8EBPhttps://twitter.com/CultureVolcan/status/672786032622981120/photo/1http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/etna/current-activity.htmlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZaFT_-ba7khttp://www.livescience.com/27421-mount-etna.htmlhttp://www.magadb.net/locations/11/https://twitter.com/EtnaPeople/status/672347866061520896 -- source link

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