Explosions from Mt. Etna, Europe's largest active volcano, sent lava rocks flying into the air early Wednesday morning. It is the 11th major eruption in the past few weeks.
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Lava flows from the Mt Etna volcano, near Catania in Sicily, southern Italy.
Mount Etna, Europeâs most active volcano, has awed even seasoned volcanologists in recent days with spectacular spurts of lava lighting up the Sicilian sky each night. The latest eruption overnight petered out by around 0900 GMT Tuesday, according to Italyâs National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology.
For over a week, Etna has been belching lava, ash, and volcanic rocks on a regular basis. The nearby Catania Airport closed temporarily, and residents of the town of Pedara said it appeared one-day last week as if it were raining rocks as a thick blanket of ash covered the town.
MOUNT Etna burst into life on February 16, shooting lava up to 700 metres into the sky. The volcano has continued to erupt, with the phenomenon seen from satellites in space.
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Mt. Etna, Europe s highest and most active volcano, is more active than usual during the past few days after being hit by an earthquake. The spectacular continuous eruptions have resulted in dozens of photos surfacing online; many are amazed by the striking natural firework display.
Small earthquakes after volcano activity
According to a volcanic activity tracking website, Volcano Discovery, a plethora of relatively small earthquakes struck under the eastern flank of Etna on Sunday the 24th. The earthquakes that measured on an average of 2.3 magnitudes took place at around 10 to 20 kilometers (approximately 6 to 12 miles) underground.
Analysts say the quakes suggest that there is a fault zone within the Earth that has been activated, however the cause of this activation still remains uncertain. Because the quakes were rather relatively weak, it s still unsure if the local inhabitants around the area are affected by the land tremors.
| UPDATED: 00:34, Mon, Jan 25, 2021
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Etna, the highest and most active volcano in Europe, has been erupting spectacularly over the past few days. Images have shown lava oozing out of vents, while others show “fireworks” of explosions.