Etna volcano update: New lava fountain episode showers villages with ash
Tue, 2 Mar 2021, 18:27
18:27 PM | BY: T
Lava fountain during Etna's paroxysm this afternoon (image: Tom Pfeiffer / VolcanoDiscovery)
Eruption column above the New SE crater (image: Tom Pfeiffer / VolcanoDiscovery)
The ash plume bending towards the southern slopes during a short window of visibility (image: Tom Pfeiffer / VolcanoDiscovery)
Golden sunlight filtered by volcanic ash and gasses with the eruption plume (image: Tom Pfeiffer / VolcanoDiscovery)
Around noon, first signs of reactivation of the New SE crater could be noticed in the form of small, intermittent strombolian-type explosions. Starting from 13:24 local time, volcanic tremor began to rise sharply, the typical sign for the impending onset of a new paroxysm (lava fountaining episode).
The strombolian activity at the New SE crater quickly increased to become sustained lava fountains, which lasted for almost 2 and a half hours! Activity reached its climax around 15:00-15:30 and quickly decreased from 15:40 and ceased at 15:50. Unfortunately, most of the time, the summit region of Etna was hidden in clouds, but a brief window towards the end of the eruption allowed Tom and Marco to witness this extraordinary event from close.
As during the previous episodes, voluminous lava flows were erupted to the east into Valle del Bove and likely also to the south towards the Torre del Filosofo area.
A tall ash column rose to an unknown height, but of at least several kilometers. It was pushed and bent by northerly winds towards the south, where its fallout caused heavy ash fall on the southern slopes of Etna, in particular in Nicolosi village, San Gregorio, Trecastagni, Aci S. Antonio, Pedara as well as in the City of Catania.
The Fontanarossa airport of Catania was temporarily closed down due to the volcanic ash fall.
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Previous news
Tue, 2 Mar 2021, 13:15
Tue, 2 Mar 2021, 09:48
For now, the volcano has remained mostly calm 48 hours since the latest lava fountaining episode. ... read all
Mon, 1 Mar 2021, 11:05
Weak activity continues last night at the New SE crater, with weak lava flow emission from the eastern end of the main eruptive fissure, but gradually ceased during the night. ... read all
Mon, 1 Mar 2021, 09:13
The latest lava fountaining episode, or paroxysm, occurred in the morning of Sunday 28 Feb 2021, after a longer interval than the previous six ones. After roughly three and a half day, the awaited number 7 episode of the current series of paroxysms occurred Sunday morning around 9 am local time. ... read all
Sun, 28 Feb 2021, 15:00
