The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Volcano alert in Italy: Etna puts even paralyze air traffic - Researchers talks about further outbreaks

2022-02-23T09:40:22.992Z


Volcano alarm in Italy: Etna even paralyzes air traffic - researchers talk about further eruptions Created: 02/23/2022Updated: 02/23/2022 10:29 am Italy, Pedara: Ash rises from the south-eastern crater of Etna volcano. © -/XinHua/dpa Etna volcano in Sicily has been erupting for a year. It hasn't been that common in a long time. Even air traffic had to be stopped. Catania - On the Italian islan


Volcano alarm in Italy: Etna even paralyzes air traffic - researchers talk about further eruptions

Created: 02/23/2022Updated: 02/23/2022 10:29 am

Italy, Pedara: Ash rises from the south-eastern crater of Etna volcano.

© -/XinHua/dpa

Etna volcano in Sicily has been erupting for a year.

It hasn't been that common in a long time.

Even air traffic had to be stopped.

Catania - On the Italian island of Sicily, Mount Etna appears to have woken up again following February's major eruptions.

"Further eruptions are quite possible," said volcano researcher Boris Behncke from the National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) in Catania of the German Press Agency.

According to his own statements, the German has been living in Sicily for about 25 years and is researching Mount Etna there.

Etna spits lava and smoke again: Air traffic paralyzed

On Monday, lava and dense smoke shot out of the more than 3300 meter high mountain again.

For a short time, the eruption episode, researchers speak of a paroxysm, even paralyzed operations at the airport in Catania at the southern foot of Mount Etna.

According to the INGV, the column of smoke reached a height of up to twelve kilometers, measured at sea level.

Ash and dust rained down from the sky in some places around the area.

"I thought there had been a thunderstorm because I heard loud thunder and suddenly the sun was gone," a resident south of Mount Etna told the dpa.

"When the windows and doors started vibrating shortly afterwards, I saw this incredible column of smoke," she said.

Etna Expert: Eruption episodes are not usually dangerous for residents

According to Behncke, the episodes on Mount Etna are generally not dangerous for the residents.

Loud thunder can often be heard for minutes.

"It rattles decently," explained Behncke.

Only the ash raining down is a nuisance for the people around the mountain, since cleaning it can be time-consuming.

Etna spewed lava and ash in 52 episodes between February and October last year.

According to Behncke, these combined were one of the largest eruptions of the past centuries.

How things will continue on Etna is difficult to predict.

The fact that a series of eruptions could start again like almost at the same time in 2021 is more of a coincidence.

"It's very arbitrary," Behncke added.

Unlike then, less magma has now accumulated in the mountain.

(md with dpa)

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2022-02-23

You may like

Trends 24h

News/Politics 2024-03-28T06:04:53.137Z

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.