The Italian Volcano Monitoring Agency stated that the height of the crater southeast of Mount Etna has increased after six months of activity, making Europe’s highest active volcano higher than ever.
The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) in Catania, Sicily, stated that the youngest and most active crater of Mount Etna has risen to a record 3,357 meters (11,000 feet) above sea level.
INGV wrote in a press release: “Due to the analysis and processing of satellite images, the Southeast Crater is now much higher than its “brother” Northeast Crater. This is the undisputed Mount Etna for 40 years. The top.
Since mid-February, about 50 volcanic ash and lava have been ejected from the crater, causing “significant changes in the outline of the volcano.”
In 1981, the crater in the northeast reached a record height of 3,350 meters, but the collapse of its edges lowered it to the 2018 record of 3,326 meters.
Since February, the crater has been emitting smoke and ash, which poses little danger to surrounding villages.
The Sicilian government estimated in July that it has so far removed 300,000 tons of volcanic ash.
Volcanic ash caused trouble in the surrounding area, dirtying the streets, slowing down traffic and destroying crops.
In Catania, a two-hour drive from the volcano, pensioner Tania Cannizzaro told AFP that Mount Etna is both beautiful and disturbing, and the ash sometimes falls “like rain.”
“Depending on the wind, the rumbling of the volcano will reach Catania and make the windows vibrate,” she said, adding that the ashes blackened the streets and balconies.
“But there are also spectacles, especially at night, when you see this red plume moving.”
