It is a fiery monster that never sleeps. On February 16, the Etna volcano erupted again. It released clouds of smoke and ash that were over a kilometer high. The seismic activity of the largest volcano in Europe alarmed everyone. He caused the Italian authorities to take security measures. A striking picture shows the lava flows from space.
One of the most active
This is an infrared image of the Etna volcano. It was captured on February 18 from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite space. And it shows us a huge flow of lava in bright red. Mount Etna on the Italian island of Sicily is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. It erupted twice in less than 48 hours, spewing a fountain of lava and ash into the sky, reports ESA.
After the powerful eruption on Tuesday February 16, the volcano produced another spectacular fire. It created tall lava fountains that shot into the night sky and reached heights of around 700 meters. The consequences of these outbreaks depend on whether and to what extent they persist. There are thousands of people on the alert right now.
Lava on the move
The first eruption caused large streams of lava in the Valle del Bove to drop to the east. And so it traveled about 4 kilometers. The second major explosion on Thursday the 18th caused the lava to also run about 1.3 kilometers down the volcano’s southern flanks.
The ashes of the eruptions covered the city of Catania. Authorities have been monitoring developments in nearby towns at the foot of the volcano. Lava flows from space give an idea of their strength. The eruption also forced the temporary closure of Sicilian Catania Airport, which often occurs when the volcano is active.
