Etna volcano - eruption update

Archived updates: Most recent updates Part 11: Lava flow episodes from SE crater (July 2016 - Mar 2017) Paroxysms in Voragine in May 2015 (Dec 2015-June 2016) Paroxysms from Voragine in Dec 2015 Paroxysms from NSEC in Feb and May, weak summit activity (Jan-Nov 2015) Intermittent ash emissions and lava flows from New SE crater (May 2014 - Jan 2015) Lava flows and strombolian activity at New SE crater, pyroclastic flow 11 Feb (Jan-April 2014) Paroxysms and lava flows from New SE crater (Dec 2013) Paroxysms from New SE crater (Nov 2013) Paroxysms from New SE crater and quiet (April-Oct 2013) Paroxysms from New SE crater (Feb-Mar 2013) Intermittent strombolian activity from Bocca Nuova and New SE crater (archived entries April 2012 - Jan 2013) Etna's New SE crater paroxysm #25 on 24 April 2012 (archived entries 12-24 April 2012) Etna's New SE crater paroxysm #24 on 12 April 2012 (archived entries 1-12 April 2012) Etna's New SE crater paroxysm #23 on 1 April 2012 (archived entries 18 March - 1 April 2012) Etna's New SE crater paroxysm #22 on 18 March 2012 (archived entries 4-18 March 2012) Etna's New SE crater paroxysm #21 on 4 March 2012 (archived entries 18 Feb - 4 March 2012)

The latest updates are on the top. Reload this page from time to time if you want to check for updates.

Etna volcano (Italy): ash emissions from NE crater cease, volcano currently calm

The volcano observatory (INGV Catania) announced that the intermittent ash emissions from the NE crater, which had been occurring at fluctuating intensity during the past few days ceased yesterday morning. No new emissions were observed after 08:38 local time.
Currently, the volcano seems to be relatively quiet (something that can change very quickly, though). Average seismic activity, ground deformation, and thermal signals are low. Only dense steam plumes are currently rising from the summit craters, mostly Bocca Nuova and SE crater complex.

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Etna volcano (Italy): ash emissions from NE crater

Ash emissions occurred this morning from the northeast crater. It seems that the ash, brownish in color, was cold and composed of older material, likely from internal collapses in the crater (a portion of the crater rim had collapsed a few days ago).
There is currently no eruptive activity at the volcano involving fresh lava and monitoring signals do not suggest an immediate change likely; only a weak thermal anomaly continues to be present from the southeast crater complex.
Of course, this can change very quickly, particularly at a volcano as active as Etna.

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Etna volcano (Italy): summit area open for excursions again

The summit area of the volcano has been reopened for excursions with authorized mountain guides today.

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Etna volcano (Italy) activity update: weak ash emissions from Central summit crater

The volcano observatory (INGV Catania) reported that after a pause in explosive activity from its summit crater, weak intermittent ash emissions have resumed this morning.
This weak activity originates from Etna's Voragine and possibly also the Bocca Nuova summit craters. No other monitoring parameters currently suggest an increase of activity in the near future.

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Etna volcano (Italy) activity update: ash emissions from central summit crater

After the recent, short-lived subterminal eruption ended last week, the volcano remains restless.
Dense and relatively intense ash emissions are occurring from the central summit crater (Voragine).
INGV Catania wrote about this activity: "It is coughing since the early afternoon of 13 June 2019, after more than three years of relative calm. As we have already seen in the videos published yesterday on this page, the emissions are occurring from a new vent in the northwestern inner wall of the crater.
This vent is distinct from the collapse pits that had opened in August 2016 and between January and April 2019 in the eastern and northern inner walls of the crater."
A video can be found on our facebook group.

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• INGVvulcani (facebook)

Etna volcano (Italy) eruption update: eruption is probably ending

The recent sub-terminal eruption of Etna, which started early on 30 May, is probably ending or has ended already. During the past 24 hours, lava emission gradually decreased.
While the southeastern lava flow was still active this morning, lava effusion appears now to have ceased or at least decreased to a fraction of its initial output. The lava flow on the NE side already stopped yesterday.

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Etna volcano (Italy) eruption update: lava flows travel into Valle del Bove

The eruption which began in the early hours of 30 May 2019 from new fissure vents on both the NE and SE sides of the New Southeast Crater continues with little change.
Two lava lava flows, well fed, are moving into the Valle del Bove accompanied by loud strombolian activity at the vents.
Here's a video our local tour manager and coordinator Emanuela took yesterday morning:


Different from the Dec 2018 eruption, no significant earthquake activity has so far occurred along with the eruption.

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New eruption early this morning

A new eruption started overnight: around 3 am local time, a small effusive fissure opened on the south-south-eastern base of the New SE crater and generated a small lava flow which is still active now.

Another lava flow originated from a vent on the SE side on the same cone, near the area where the eruption in Dec 2018 had started.
Seismic activity started to rise last evening, peaked around midnight, then decreased a bit, but has been more or less stable since.

Etna volcano (Italy): continuing ash emissions

For more than a month, sometimes intense ash emissions have been taking place from the NE crater and, to lesser extent, from Bocca Nuova.
These ashes are currently believed not to be formed by fresh magma rising in the conduits, but instead are composed of older material that is now being vented from the inner conduits. It can be interpreted as the surface expression of internal re-adjustments that followed the brief, but intense eruption at Christmas last year, which drained (some of the) magma from the conduits and reservoirs.
Another factor are likely the seismic events around the volcano in the days and weeks after, which also might have caused internal shifts in magma storage.

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Continuing ash emissions from Bocca Nuova and NE crater

The activity at the volcano continues with pulsating, often strong ash emissions from the NE and Bocca Nuova craters at intervals of few minutes.
However, seismic activity remains low and there are currently no indications that these ash emissions (even though they are quite spectacular sometimes) are caused by fresh magma rising and might herald possible new activity in the near future.
More likely, they reflect internal adjustments of the conduits and internal reservoirs still drained by the flank eruption on Christmas 2018 (i.e. the ashes could be largely from fragmented older material).

Ash emissions from NE crater

The volcano continues to be restless, although it has been calming down overall during the past weeks. Small earthquakes, although less in numbers and size (rarely exceeding magnitude 2) continue to occur in clusters under the western, southern and eastern flanks.

On the surface, the NE crater has been producing dense (but rather cold) ash emissions that form a sometimes impressive plume drifting from the summit area.

Etna volcano (Italy): shallow magnitude 4.1 earthquake under NE rift zone

The volcano remains restless in form of earthquakes. A magnitude 4.1 earthquake at 2 km depth beneath the northeastern rift zone occurred early this morning at 00:50 am.
Some residents in the area, e.g. from Linguaglossa town reported to have been woken up by the tremor (detail info for this earthquake).
Whether the earthquake is caused by magma intrusion in this area prone to flank eruptions or of other origin (tectonic adjustment of the east flank) is unclear.

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Etna volcano (Sicily, Italy) activity update: small ash emissions from NE crater

After several days of bad, unusually cold weather (and heavy snowfalls on the upper flanks), Etna has again been visible in its splendor since yesterday morning.
Volcanologist Boris Behncke (INGV Catania) observed small, dilute ash emissions from the NE crater, which occurred at short intervals and caused small peaks in seismic activity.
Other than that, the volcano has continued to calm down overall, but this can of course change rapidly.

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• Boris Behncke's photo on facebook

Etna volcano (Italy): earthquakes under SW flank

The volcano continues to show signs of unrest. A swarm of shallow small earthquakes has been occurring under the SW flank during the past days and seems to be increasing.
The strongest shock so far was a magnitude 3.5 event at very shallow depth 7 km north of Ragalna about 5 hours ago (at 06:10 am local time), felt as weak shaking in the villages on Etna's southern and western flanks.
Whether these quakes are related to possible magma intrusions under the western rift zone can be speculated about.
At the surface, the volcano seems rather quiet and bad weather currently prevents detailed visual observation.

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Etna volcano (Italy): satellite data reveal part of the volcano has moved by 50 cm during 24-26 Dec 2018

Italian scientists have analyzed satellite data from the Italian Cosmo-SkyMed and the European Sentinel satellites, which passed over Etna both before and after the short, but intense flank eruption that began on 24 December 2018 and the seismic crisis that accompanied this event and culminated in the 4.8 magnitude early on 26 Dec with an epicenter near the villages Viagrande, Trecastagni and Fleri on the southeastern side of Etna.
Comparing the data, they were able to calculate how the shape of the volcano changed due to the intrusion of the magma, which in parts rose to the surface through the new eruptive fissures, and in parts became "stuck" as shallow and deeper intrusions. The results are stunning:
- the western slope of Etna has moved 30 centimeters to the west (in red on the map, figure c);
- the eastern slope moved 50 centimeters to the east (in blue on the map, figure c).
The star at the bottom right indicates the epicenter of mentioned strongest quake.
The main fault involved was the so-called Fiandaca fault, where the earth's crust has moved eastwards by 12-14 centimeters and westwards by 15-17 centimeters. Other faults were also involved in the swarm, but more indirectly, as reactions to the main movement on the Fiandaca fault: the of Pernicanca fault (on the north-eastern side) moved 3 centimeters, the Ragalna fault (south-west slope) and that of Borello-Ognina (south slope) of 2 centimeters.

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• Misurati gli spostamenti del suolo avvenuti a seguito dell'eruzione dell'Etna e del terremoto del 26 dicembre (CNR - Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche)

Etna volcano (Italy): volcano remains restless as small earthquakes and steam emissions continue

The volcano remains highly restless. Although no more lava is being erupted right now, strong gas and dense ash emissions continue from the Bocca Nuova crater as a sign that magma is close to the surface.
Seismic activity as well remains elevated. Today, a cluster of small earthquakes occurred at shallow depths (1-8 km) beneath the SW flank, which could indicate another intrusion beneath that area. The largest was a magnitude 3.4 event at 19:30 local time, felt by some residents nearby.

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Decreasing activity for now, but this could change soon

The decreasing trend in surface and earthquake activity on and around Etna continues and there is little to nothing left of the vigorous flank eruption that had started on Christmas Eve (24 Dec 2018). However, the volcano is far from quiet and there are indications that more and potentially more dangerous activity could be in the making.



A tell-tale sign that the flank eruption could only be a prelude is that magma continues to stand high inside the volcano's conduit: glow and intense gas and steam emissions are visible from the Bocca Nuova, producing a tall plume rising vertically into the evening sky. The recent eruption has drained only very little of the available magma. Will more come out soon?


Eugenio Priviera, director of INGV (the National Institute of Geology and Volcanology) mentioned in an interview quoted in a Sicilian newspaper that new eruptive fissures could open up even at lower altitudes. INGV posted a special report about the current situation and the recent earthquakes on its blog site:
Even though the current surface phenomena are weakening, the general decrease in eruptive activity could be misleading: information obtained from geophysical cannot exclude that magma supply into the same dike that fed the recent eruption is still in progress, and could open its way with new fissures down to altitudes beneath 2,400 m, especially in the area of the southern and western walls of Valle del Bove.

In the newspaper article mentioned, Priviera explains that one area particularly at risk for this could be the area of ​​Piano del Vescovo south of Valle del Bove in the SE sector of Etna. Whether this will happen or not cannot be predicted. According to the newspaper, Priviera said that the recent earthquakes have shown that the known Fiandaca fault was activated, which is a potentially dangerous situation. He announced that ground deformation monitoring is being intensified in the area.

Yesterday's destructive M4.8 earthquake that hit the lower SE flank of Etna t 03:19 local time (26 Dec) occurred 1 km S of Lavinaio (CT) village and caused lots of damage to houses and buildings. Its depth was localized to be at only 1 km below sea level (i.e. approx. 1500 m below the surface).
The quake coincided with the 3rd day of the eruption of Etna. INGV writes that "it should be noted that the earthquake was not generated by movements of magma masses present in the epicentral area, but probably was the response of the eastern flank of the volcano to a stress induced by the magmatic system that at that time fed the eruption."
In other words, the pressure induced by rising magma in the central conduit might have been the trigger to activate the fault lines on the eastern flank, but are likely not a sign that magma was intruding in the same area of the quake (at the lower eastern flank).

Eruption update - continuing earthquake swarm

Bad weather has mostly prevented clear sights of the new flank eruption today, but it seems that while it is still going on, lava emission from the new fissure vent high in the Valle del Bove that opened yesterday has decreased.

The area remains obscured in clouds, but thermal cameras show continuing activity from the Bocca Nuova.

Seismic activity remains elevated, showing that the eruption is certainly not over and still evolving: the recent earthquake swarm continues (albeit at decreased intensity) with approx. 20 earthquakes with magnitudes between 2 and 3.4 having been detected during the past 24 hours. Most quakes were at shallow depth in the SE sector of the volcano.

First images / videos from the new eruption

Our Etna specialist Emanuela climbed Etna earlier today, witnessing the onset of the new flank eruption in the upper Valle del Bove.
You can find the images in this gallery.
Video from the beginning of the eruption:

Video compilation showing the ash emissions and the lava flow from the new fissure vent:

Etna volcano (Sicily, Italy) activity update

The following video shows the beginning of Etna volcano's new flank eruption, starting around noon on 24 Dec 2018: a series of quakes accompanies the progressive opening of several fractures, accompanied by strong ash emission, on and below the SE crater.
An eruptive fissure opens around 17:00 local time in the upper western headwall of the Valle del Bove, followed by a river of lava descending from there and quickly reaching the bottom of it:

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Magnitude 4.5 earthquake

A magnitude 4.5 quake occurred a few minutes ago near Etna. The eruption is still evolving fast.
Link to earthquake information

Flank eruption confirmed from new fissure in upper Valle del Bove

Beginning of darkness makes it easier to see what is going on: a flank eruption in from the a new effusive vent in the upper western headwall of the Valle del Bove, SE of the SE crater.
The lava flow has already reached and is spreading in the Valle del Bove itself. For now, it does not pose any danger.

Eruption visible from satellite

The strong ash emissions can also be seen on satellite images - impressive!

Magnitude 4 earthquake hits Etna's east flank

Seismic activity at Etna is significant. The largest quake today so far has been a magnitude 4 quake at 2 km depth under the SE flank. It occurred at 13:09 local time and was widely felt around in the area.
It was most certainly associated with the opening of the new eruptive fissure below the SE crater.

Etna volcano (Sicily, Italy) activity update: subterminal flank eruption

The volcano decided to begin a subterminal flank eruption, i.e. effusion of lava from a flank vent connected to the upper conduits in the summit area.
Currently, a large lava flow is currently running into the upper Valle del Bove from a new fissure vent at the southeastern feet of the New SE crater, near the former Belvedere area.
Whether this develops further into a true flank eruption is still unclear. Seismic activity is elevated; our correspondent on location could feel the earth share violently beneath her feet. Tremor is still high, which could indicate that the fractures are still propagating, although seems to be decreasing already. Right now, the eruption poses no danger.

Etna's way to celebrate Christmas is certainly interesting!

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Strong lava flow from fracture at eastern base of SE crater

From webcam imagery, a strong lava flow seems to be coming from a fracture on the eastern base of the New SE crater, headed into the Valle del Bove (where it poses no threat).

Strong seismic activity

Something significant is in progress at Etna:
Emanuela who's on location reported "crazy seismic activity" and that new fractures have opened on the eastern and southern flank of the SE crater (SEC).
Emanuela who's on her way to the volcano sent the above images from the intense activity of ash emissions.

Ongoing eruption seen from the west side

Etna volcano (Italy): eruption intensifies, possibly heading towards a paroxysm

[UPDATE]
A significant event is in progress at the volcano. Strong seismic activity, felt by people, has been accompanying the opening of several fractures in the summit area, most notably on the eastern and southern flanks of the New SE crater, which is emitting dense ash plumes.
The activity of the volcano is increasing and looks as if going towards a paroxysm.
Strombolian activity from the New SE crater has intensified, and currently strong ash emissions are visible, suggesting pulsating lava fountaining.
Our local correspondents reported a seismic swarm was detected and tremor is also rising. They are on their way towards the mountain and we will probably be able to send a more detailed report later. In the meanwhile, you can look at the evolving eruption webcams online.

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Etna volcano (Italy): lava flows and strombolian explosions from SE crater

Mild effusive/explosive activity continues at the eastern vent of the New SE crater, feeding two small lava flows traveling a few hundred meters down the eastern slope of the crater towards the upper Valle del Bove.
The larger and more active flow emerges from the rim of the new cinder cone, while the the smaller one to the south of it is coming from a vent located few meters beneath the crater rim.
While the lava effusion seems to have been more or less stable, strombolian (explosive) activity has been decreasing over the past days. On 9 Dec, it was continuous, as pulsating low fountains, with abundant noise audible in several kilometers distance.
When observed this evening, strombolian explosions were smaller and much more intermittent, and only rarely ejected incandescent material to the outer slopes of the eastern flank of the SE crater complex.

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Etna volcano (Italy): activity update - strombolian activity from several summit vents

Over the past few weeks, Etna has been showing mild, sporadic strombolian activity from 5 of the summit vents: 3 vents inside Bocca Nuova (two in the northwestern and one in its southeastern pits), the NE crater and less frequently from the New SE crater.
The ejection of incandescent bombs rarely reach above and beyond the rims of both Bocca Nuova and NE crater. More or less intense ash emissions, in particular from the NE crater, accompany the activity.
The vent in the upper eastern wall of Voragine (which had formed on 7 Aug 2016) showed a marked increase in degassing activity during the past week.
As a result of the strombolian activity inside Bocca Nuova, a new intra-crater cinder cone has been growing at the bottom of the western pit. During one of our guided tours to the summit last Sunday (30 Sep), mountain guide Francesco Ciancitto could confirm the opening of a new vent inside Bocca Nuova's western pit just next to the actively erupting one. It showed strong degassing; thus, there are currently 4 active vents in Bocca Nuova alone.

Earthquake activity:
Tremor and degassing levels have been low to average according to the latest weekly bulletin of the volcano observatory (INGV Catania). However, it should be noted that a number of volcano-tectonic earthquakes have affected the middle eastern flank recently. The largest events were two quakes of magnitudes 2.9 and 3.5 at depths around 5 km near the Pernicana fault (which often has acted as an "opener" for the NE rift zone in the past). However, there are no signs currently of an impending larger (rift) eruption.

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• Bollettino settimanale sul monitoraggio vulcanico, geochimico e sismico del vulcano Etna 02/10/2018 (INGV Catania)

Eruption seems to decrease

The strombolian activity from the SE crater which started Thursday evening is progressively decreasing. From time to time weak ash emissions are still observed. The effusive activity has almost stopped. The seismic tremor is still at an elevated level, but it is also showing a decreasing trend.

New eruptive activity at SE crater

Last night, new activity started at the SE crater. Tremor began to rise sharply at around 20:30 local time, accompanied by mild strombolian activity from the new cone in the saddle between the "old" and "new" SE crater.

A small lava flow also emerged. The activity continues this morning, sometimes generating ash plumes of several hundred meters height.

Earthquake swarms under eastern and western flanks

The volcano is becoming increasingly restless. Two earthquake swarms have occurred during the past days:
The first was at medium depths (mostly 10-30 km) beneath the eastern flank during 24-26 May, the second one started yesterday and is still continuing under the western flank at depths around 5-10 km. Both could indicate an intrusion of magma, and tremor levels are slightly elevated. Whether this heralds a new eruption in the near future (days, weeks?) is matter of speculation. So far, the quakes have been relatively weak.

When we visited Bocca Nuova last Saturday, we noticed relatively strong, pulsating gas emissions from not-very-deep seated explosions inside the main western vent. According to the mountain guides, this activity had increased, as well as degassing from some areas at the southern rim of the central crater as well as the NE crater.

Weak ash emissions from SE crater and seismic activity

Since last Monday the SE crater is showing small signs of activity again. During last nights weak sporadic glowes were seen from the depression on the eastern slope of the crater and starting this morning small ash emissions are occurring intermittently from the top of the crater.
Several seismic swarms have been recorded below the southwest slope of Mount Etna since last month. The last swarm occurred on September 18th, close to Mt. Intraleo on the western slope of the volcano. 45 eartquakes were recorded from 04:06 (UTC) to 08:31 (UTC) with magnitudes ranging between M1.0 and M3.3. The strongest earthquake, magnitude M 3.3, took place at 07:21 (UTC) at a depth of 5.5 km. Researchers think this suggests a new phase of deep magmatic recharge is taking place.
Furthermore on August 24 a new eruptive phase began at Salinelle dei Cappuccini with a mud flow that partly invaded the road around the Paternò stadium. The Salinelle dei Cappuccini is one of three mud volcano fields located between the villages of Paternò and Belpasso characterized by persistent emission of mud and gases. It is possible that the recent seismic activity may have modified their level of activity.

Small ash emissions, steam rings, summit access for tours reopened

The volcano remains restless although no one knows what will come next. After a few weeks of "total silence", tiny ash emissions started again to occur from the SE crater since 9 July, volcanologist Dr Boris Behncke reported on facebook. This activity, which could represent small but deep-seated explosive activity inside the SE crater's conduits, has been continuing over the past days, with a slight increase yesterday (see video below).

Access to the summit craters for tours guided by authorized mountain guides has been allowed again.


Other than that, there is intense degassing from the Voragine summit crater, which sometimes also produces beautiful smoke rings (steam ring vortexes), while the Bocca Nouva's crater floor continues to undergo slow concentric collapse (see images on facebook)

Intermittent ash emissions from SE crater

After a period of calm during the past weeks, the SE crater started again to show signs of unrest. Since yesterday morning, small to moderate ash emissions have been occurring intermittently from the summit vent of the SE crater complex. Thermal imagery indicates that the ashes are relatively cold, suggesting that the magma column at the moment resides still low in the conduit. Whether the observed ash puffs are caused by deep-seated explosive activity (=degassing of magma) or by internal collapses is difficult to say. Other than from the SE crater, there is strong degassing from the Voragine as well as weak incandescence in the Voragine and the crater open on the eastern side of the SE crater.

Regular "mini-eruptions" at SE crater - an interpretation

Since 11 May, Etna has been in an unusual state of activity. At remarkably regular intervals of approx. 8 hours, the "saddle vent", located between Etna's old and new Southeast Crater, has been producing more than 20 brief episodes of mild strombolian activity, each accompanied by a short-lived increase in volcanic tremor amplitude. The episodes are further characterized by the absence of strong degassing.

What causes this unusual and certainly transient behavior is not exactly known. Researcher Dr Marco Neri tries to give an explanation in an article on La Gazzetta Siracusana(loosely translated):
"In fact, Etna volcano produces "mini-eruptions" that last a few tens of minutes, located at the top of the New South-East Crater, at about 3300 meters. There would be nothing strange about this, except that these events occur with an impressive regularity, about 3 a day, and at fairly constant intervals of about eight hours. A phenomenon that closely resembles that of geysers, although in this case it is magma to erupt at the surface and not water. ...
These small eruptive events are always accompanied by an increase in the amplitude of volcanic tremor, which corresponds to a vibration produced by movements of volcanic fluids circulating within the eruptive duct. When the magma approaches the surface and erupts, tremor increases sharply. ... Therefore, the tremor graph shows a series of almost regular peaks for amplitude and intervals. It's like volcano's hiccups!

"Why do these mini-eruptions happen? What makes them so regular and frequent? Without claiming to always understand everything about a volcano, especially Etna which is full of surprises, we can try to give an answer:
Etna's feeding system, and in particular the eruptive ducts that feeds these eruptions, can be imagined like a narrow and long pressure pot. The heat of the magma is similar to the fire lit under the pot, while the gases separating from the magma and accumulating in the top of the duct correspond to the water vapor that forms inside the pot when the water is heated and bubbles.
Finally, the eruptive vent from which the mini-eruptions occur can be compared to the valve of our pressure cooker. Every time the gas pressure inside the duct exceeds a certain critical value, the "valve" opens and some magma erupts on the surface. And to complete the similitude, the characteristic "whistle" of the pot valve that opens can be compared to the hissing sounds that people nearby perceive during these mini-eruptions.

"The extraordinary nature of the phenomenon that we observe at the moment lies, however, in the fact of the remarkable regularity of the mini-eruptions, showing that the system has reached an excellent balance between the magma that is being fed from below into the upper ducts and the magma that is lost (expelled) from the system during these mini-eruptions.
What will happen?
How can the hiccups of Etna cease? The phenomenon may last for a long time, at least until this balance between the rising magma and the eruptions stays in place. Things will eventually change when the available magma volume will decrease, or, if the volume of fresh magma rising from below increases significantly, leading probably to eruptive episodes such as observed during the past months.
Also the geometry of the upper portion of the the vent, or, to stay in the image, our "volcano" vent valve, plays an important role: should this vent change, e.g. collapse, or become obstructed, it would certainly also change the course followed by magma to reach the surface, as well as the energy needed to produce an eruption.
In this case, it would change the eruptive style of the volcano and perhaps also the position of the eruptive vent." (Marco Neri / INGV Catania)

New effusive episode from SE crater during 26-28 April 2017

Another mainly effusive eruptive episode occurred from the SE crater during 26-28 April.
Starting from the evening of 26 April at around 18:00 local time, a lava flow started to emerge slowly from the summit vent of the Southeast Cone and descended to the south and then bended eastwards at the foot of the SE crater complex.
There was with no significant explosive activity in the beginning: this was likely because the first lava to be erupted was the remaining, degassed lava still in the conduit from the previous episode being pushed out first by a new batch of rising magma.
SE cone collapses, new lava flow to the north
During the night, after the new magma arrived at the surface and mild strombolian activity (or low pulsating lava fountains) started to occur as well, as effective degassing of the fresher magma. At around 01 am in the night, the SE cone collapsed partially, probably because its edifice, already fractured, could no longer withstand the pressure of magma in its conduit. A second lava flow emerged and traveled north from the vent.
The eruption with two lava flows continued all night and during the morning of 27 April.
Starting from noon of 27 April, the lava flow to the southern flank of the SE crater started to decrease and ceased by around 13:30. The northern lava flow continued during the evening, but also ceased during the night 27-28 April.

Phreatomagmatic explosions
During the morning of 27 April, the advance of the new lava flow on the northern side over fresh (not covered by recent flows) snow-covered ground triggered a series of small phreatomagmatic explosions.
The most significant such explosion took place between 08:46 and 08:48 local time. It begins with the emission of steam from the center of the lava flow, shortly followed by the ejection of fragments from the flow itself. This event also triggered a rapid melt-water hot avalanche that traveled about 700 m in less than 2 minutes.
A smaller melt-water flow was also observed earlier at around 06:52 local time.

Part 11 | Part 10 (Dec 2015 - June 2016) | Part 9 (Dec 2015) | Part 8 (Jan-Nov 2015) | Part 7 (May 2014 - Jan 2015) | Jan-April 2014 | December 2013 | November 2013 | April - October 2013 | Feb-March 2013 (New SE crater paroxysms) | April 2012-Jan 2013