Etna is the highest active stratovolcano in Europe, located in Italy, on the east coast of Sicily. It is the 10th largest volcano on the planet. Height (very approximate) 3429 meters above sea level, it can change after the next eruption. Covers an area of 1550 sq. km (More than Vesuvius volcano - 2.9 times). It has a cone shape with gentle lower and steeper upper slopes.
Differs in high activity. In the pauses between eruptions - the release of gases and water vapor. Frequent earthquakes. Up to a height of 800-900 meters on fertile volcanic soil - fields, orchards, vineyards, above - Mediterranean shrubs, forest areas (beech, oak, hornbeam, maple, black pine), thickets of barberry, astragalus. At an altitude of over 1,500 meters, Etna has been covered with snow for several months.
Geographic coordinates 37 ° 45'18 ″ north latitude; 14 ° 59'43 ″ east longitude.
History
600,000 years ago, there was a sea bay on the site of Etna, and volcanic activity began underwater. As a result of numerous eruptions, a volcanic cone rose from the bottom. Etna built itself for a long time and as a result a complex geological formation was created, which cannot be called a separate volcano. Rather, it is an asymmetric volcanic complex, a whole mountain range. Repeated eruptions gave Etna a complex structure with dozens of secondary cones, vents and internal craters, of which there are more than 270. The height of the mountain often changes, for example, after a powerful eruption in 1964, the volcano immediately grew by 50 meters.
About 6,000 years ago, the eastern flank of the mountain broke off and collapsed into the sea. Presumably, this collapse led to the formation of a giant tsunami, traces of which can be found in various places in the Eastern Mediterranean. The next collapse of the top of the volcano may have occurred about a thousand years ago, forming a small caldera.
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For a long time Etna was known as Mogibello, some locals still call the volcano this way. At all times, an active volcano has inspired, frightened and delighted. Pindar and Aeschylus wrote about the volcano's restless nature. The ancient Greeks believed that this terrifying mountain, bursting with smoke, was nothing more than the forge of the god Hephaestus. There is even a legend about the death of the ancient philosopher Empedocles, who, for the purpose of a scientific experiment, allegedly descended into the crater to see what was happening there.
Volcano - three in one
According to scientists, the most amazing thing about Etna is that its eruptions cannot be attributed to any of the known types. There are volcanoes that mainly eject lava flows. There are those whose eruption is in the nature of an explosion. These include, in particular, the volcanoes of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The most striking representative of the third type of volcano is Mount St. Helena in America, from which clouds of volcanic ash and gas fly out. Mount Etna combines all three types of volcanoes. It explodes, throwing volcanic bombs, gas and ash into the sky, and literally oozes lava. In terms of the volume of magma pouring out of it, Etna is second only to the most active volcano of our days - Kilauea in the Hawaiian Islands. The eruption can occur both through the central crater, and through any of the many side ones, scattered along the slopes of the mountain.
Large-scale volcanic eruptions. Victims
Compared to Vesuvius, Etna is more "complacent".
1226 BC e. - the first historically proven volcanic eruption.
44 BC e. - a grandiose eruption, ash overshadowed the sky over Rome, as a result, poor harvests were observed throughout the Mediterranean region up to Egypt.
Its most powerful eruption dates back to 122 years, when the city of Catania was destroyed by the fire element. 1169 - a powerful eruption and earthquake, approximately 15 thousand dead.
1669 - the eruption changed the shape of the coast to such an extent that the castle of Ursino, standing by the sea, was 2.5 km from the water. Lava covered the city walls of Catania, swallowing the homes of more than 27 thousand people.
Over the past decades, not a single local resident has died on Etna - only careless tourists who tried to get very close to the crater. To prevent this kind of incidents, the tourist police have banned climbing to the top of the volcano since December 2002.
A large amount of ash from Mount Etna interferes with aircraft flights.
1991-1993 - one of the most powerful eruptions, during which the town of Zafferana barely escaped in 1992.
One of the violent eruptions occurred in 1979, and in 2001, an awakened volcano destroyed the cable car and the ski resort, creating a state of emergency in Catania. After the eruption in November 2007, ash covered several local villages, and the airport in the province of Catania was forced to close for one day.
2015, December 3 - the volcano emitted a fountain of lava to a kilometer height. Local authorities were forced to close Catania's international airport.
According to volcanologist Salvatore Caffo: “The high frequency and intensity of the emissions of lava, sand, ash and stones, the rumble that never subsides - all this suggested that something special, unprecedented, was happening this time. But in 1892 and in 1983, the eruptions were about the same power. Simply in our time, communication and transport networks, infrastructure in general, have become incomparably more complex, and therefore we feel the consequences of natural disasters much more acutely."
The central crater of the volcano.
The nature of the volcano
After the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Palermo began to conduct monitoring, controlling the physical, chemical and seismic processes taking place on the volcano, volcanologists came close to unraveling the nature of the volcano. Compared to Vesuvius, Etna's magma is fluid, which facilitates the escape of gas. On the contrary, the thick, viscous lava of Vesuvius can "lock" gases, which caused the death of Pompeii and Herculaneum. In 1981 and 2001, obvious precursors of the eruption appeared 4 days before its start, but the 2002 eruption could not be predicted. Signs of the awakening of the elements were recorded only 2 hours before a column of fire burst out of the mountain.
Interesting Facts
• 1928 - the ancient town of Maskali was destroyed by the flow of lava, 770 hectares of agricultural areas of the Mascali community were devastated. At the same time, a miracle happened - a river of red-hot lava stopped in front of a religious procession. 1950 - a chapel was built in honor of this event, and after 30 years (1980) the lava flow froze in front of it.
• The vine grown here yields a black grape called the "black berry of Etna". A special wine is made from it, which has a very special taste. The volcanic soil is rich in minerals and low in organic matter, which allows for the production of high quality grapes.
• According to legend, the town of Nicolosi is protected from the "whims" of Etna by the Holy Madonna, whose statue was incredibly able to survive during the eruption of 1669, when the whole area was flooded with fiery lava.
• Solidified lava is a fairly strong and durable material. Monasteries, palaces, houses - everything in the legendary Catania is built from it. Even the fountain on Cathedral Square "Elephant" is carved out of volcanic tuff.
• 1950-1951. - the eruption lasted 372 days. 1983 - the eruption lasted 131 days. 1991 - the eruption lasted 473 days. 2008 - the eruption lasted 419 days.
Information for tourists
Tourist routes and excursions
For all other travelers, there are three proven routes in order to get to the top of the volcano.
Southern route
The southern route (it. Etna Sud) starts in the city of Catania, from where there is a bus once a day to the commune of Nicolosi (it. Nicolosi), located at the very foot of Etna. To climb to a height of 2550 m, the Sicilians built a funicular. The cable car connects the tourist centers of Rifugio Sapienza and La Montagnola. The cost of the trip is about 24-30 euros. You can reach the very top of the volcano on foot. A more exciting alternative to the funicular can be a jeep climb in the mountains. Car rental prices at Catania Airport start at 11 euros per day.
Eastern route
The eastern route (it. Etna Vest) goes through the small commune of Zafferana-Etnea (it. Zafferana Etnea), more suitable for lovers of skiing. The South and East routes intersect at 1900 m in Rufidjo Sapienza. Skiers can expect nearly 10 km of slopes here, of which only 1 km is marked as easy. The difference in altitude of 700 m makes it possible to organize quite bold skiing routes.
Northern route
The northern route (Etna Nord) is much more severe than the southern one. A winding mountain serpentine will take tourists through several towns: Piedimonte Etneo and Linguaglossa to the tourist base of Piano Provenzana. The most striking feature, perhaps, is the surface of the northern side of Etna, which is dotted with solidified splashes of lava and craters, which gives it a resemblance to the "Martian" terrain. The bizarre topography of the soil is smoothly replaced by lush forest plantations, where you can enjoy the cleanest air.