A particularly spectacular eruption of the volcano Mount Etna in Italy on Sunday erupted a high cloud of ash and lava rock to Sicilian villages, the latest in a series of explosions since mid-February.
The national geophysics and volcanology institute INGV in Italy said the powerful explosion at 02:00 is the tenth big explosion since February 16, when Europe’s most active volcano began delivering an impressive demonstration of nature’s firepower, and colored the night sky in shocking orange colors. and red.
Increasing tremors rattled through the mountain all night. Ash and small lava rocks rained down on eight slopes on the slopes of Mount Etna on Sunday morning, while lava flowed from the southeastern crater along an uninhabited side, as has been done for the past three weeks, the institute said.
The ash and lava column reached an altitude of 10,000 meters on Sunday, according to scientists monitoring volcanic activity with special instruments from an observatory in Mount Etna in eastern Sicily.
Locals swept ash and lava rocks off their front stairs and balconies. They covered cars parked outside with carpets, blankets and sheets of cardboard to make cleaning easier after each explosion. Winds helped carry the ash eastward, INGV said.
No injuries or serious damage were reported after the recent explosions. Geologically active, Etna occasionally becomes particularly noisy and explosive as it has been lately.
By mid-morning, Etna’s latest performance slowed slightly as the lava flow receded, although the volcano was still emitting a weak emission of ash from the southeastern crater. A few hours later, the volcanic tremor increased again, INGV said in a statement.
The INGV scientists say there is no way to predict when this current round of particularly strong volcanic activity could subside.