Etna Irruption
It was interesting to see Mount Etna irrupting recently. ABC television showed some spectacular pictures.
Etna is one of nine active volcanos in Italy, the most active three being Stromboli, Etna and Vesuvius.
Etna is a stratovolcano, meaning that it has steep sides built near the top with very sticky (viscous) lava. The lava moves slowly and that fact makes most ETNA irruptions less dangerous than some other volcanos' activities. Nevertheless, it irrupts often and during 2021 it irrupted so many times that it increased its height by approximately 30 metres (100 feet).
It has more than one chimney. Currently there are five and irruptions are as likely from one or more of the flank chimneys as from the central outlet.
On a visit to Etna (mentioned in the book), my wife Ruth and I had a choice of craters to visit, which rather fascinated us. A couple of the craters are fairly low on the flanks; a couple are much nearer the central chimney.
The book also describes an idyllic day and overnight we spent as the only guests in a luxurious hotel close to the volcano's lower slopes The overnight stay has left beautiful memories of Etna.
Happy reading!
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