Mt Etna Eruption Disrupts Flights To Sicily

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Flights into and out of the Italian city of Catania have been disrupted by the eruption of Mt Etna, Europe’s most active volcano.

Catania airport remained open but two air space corridors were temporarily closed on Monday, resulting in delays and disruptions for tourists trying to reach Sicily.

 

 

Mt Etna is known as  the largest active volcano in Europe. It has an elliptical base of 38 x 47 km  and a maximum elevation of about 3350 m.

The volcano dominates the landscape of NE Sicily, Italy.

The first eruptions at Etna occurred 500,000 years ago. Mt Etna has the longest period of documented eruptions in the world. Etna is noted for the wide variety of eruption styles. The volcano is at its most spectacular when when both summit and flank eruptions occur simultaneously.

 

 

The Etna volcano which looms over Catania, put on a marvelous  pyrotechnics display, belching molten lava and sending plumes of ash into the sky.

Most of the activity came from a crater on the south-east side of the mountain.This latest eruption began on Sunday and was the first major activity this year.

Dominating the landscape in eastern Sicily between Catania and the popular tourist town of Taormina, Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in the world.

The fertile volcanic soils on its flanks support extensive agriculture, including vineyards and orchards.The cone-shaped, 3350m-high volcano is coated in snow during the winter.

Since 1987 the volcano and its slopes have been designated a national park, with mountain refuges and trails provided for hikers who want to get up close to the volcano’s pyrotechnic activity. Etna was also active in ancient times and was used as a night beacon by sailors in the Mediterranean. It was mentioned by Homer in the Odyssey and by the historian Thucydides as well.