Etna's Eruptions Keep Going, and Going...

etna-erupting-110916-02 — (Image credit: NASA/Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon)

Italy's Mount Etna is currently in a period where short bursts of activity, each lasting a few hours, are interspersed with quiet periods lasting several days or weeks. Thirteen eruptive episodes, or paroxysms, had occurred by mid-September 2011. During a typical paroxysm, lava fountains at the New Southeast Crater send flows down the eastern slope of the volcano, often accompanied by a dense ash plume.

This natural-color satellite view of Mount Etna shows the volcano on September 8, 2011, just as the most recent paroxysm subsided. The image was acquired by the Advanced Land Imager (ALI) aboard the Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite. The center of activitythe New Southeast Crateris hidden by a gas-rich plume. A lava flow extends about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) to the southeast. Although the flow is obscured by the gases, heat from the flow glows bright red in a false-color image. A smaller lava flow to the north of the crater is visible as a thin black line. In the wider view, ash from an earlier stage of the eruption is visible over the coastal town of Catania.

For the science geek in everyone, Live Science offers a fascinating window into the natural and technological world, delivering comprehensive and compelling news and analysis on everything from dinosaur discoveries, archaeological finds and amazing animals to health, innovation and wearable technology. We aim to empower and inspire our readers with the tools needed to understand the world and appreciate its everyday awe.