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Etna volcano on March 10, 2021
Photo: Salvatore Allegra / dpa
The eruption of Mount Etna can also be measured on the Zugspitze.
Only two days after the eruption of the volcano in southern Italy on February 22nd, experts from the environmental research station Schneefernerhaus (UFS) found sulfur dioxide and ash particles.
The measuring point of the German Weather Service (DWD) below the Zugspitze summit registered up to 20 ppm (parts per million = particles per 1 million air particles) of sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere in the last week of February.
The normal value is below 1 ppm.
The ash particles in the air also increased sharply.
The values correlated in time with the eruptions of Mount Etna in Sicily, which is more than 1000 kilometers away.
Unusually high column of smoke and ash
The volcanic emissions on February 22nd reached a height of up to twelve kilometers, unusual for Etna, and moved in a north-westerly direction across the Mediterranean Sea and the south coast of Sardinia, according to UFS experts.
The measurements at the Schneefernerhaus indicated that there had been a movement to the north in the layers of air.
This brought the volcanic cloud over the Alps to Germany.
The air movement was also well observed with the help of satellite data.
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Volcanic eruption in Sicily: Etna spits fire and ashes
The airport of Catania south of Mount Etna had temporarily suspended operations after the eruptions.
During the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland in 2010, elevated sulfur dioxide levels and ash particles were measured at the UFS.
The information obtained at the time about the spread and amount of ash underpinned warnings for air travel, among other things.
Outbreaks over and over again
In Italy, numerous residents of Mount Etna had documented the natural spectacle.
They shared photos and videos on social media showing a huge cloud of smoke rising from the crater and lava flowing down the slope.
Eruptions occur again and again on Mount Etna.
The volcano is in the east of Sicily.
With more than 300,000 inhabitants, Catania is one of the larger cities in the area.
The volcano itself is more than 3300 meters high and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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jme / dpa