Activity at Etna during March-June 2000 was previously reported with a focus on the overall eruptive pattern (BGVN 25:06). Additional details about the eruptions on 16 April, 26 April, 5 May, and 15 May provided here by J-C. Tanguy and colleagues present a different perspective on the activity. Following the 26 April eruption a commercial aircraft encountered fallout from the plume; Boris Behncke compiled a summary of this event based on local observers and news sources.

Southeast Crater eruption on16 April. In the late afternoon of 15 April, Etna guides noticed increased fumes, and at 1920 observed a small lava flow from the Sudestino, the large spatter cone at the southern base of the SE cone. Views of the upper S flank from the summit craters were obscured by heavy fumes, but by about 2300 the lava flow could be seen barely extending to a few tens of meters E. It increased during the night to an approximate length of 500-600 m, without explosive activity at the vent. On 16 April, fumes from Sudestino continued to increase, becoming thicker with a very dense, whitish color. At about 1115 a brilliant red lava fountain 20-30 m high supplied lava flows that traveled W and E. A calm wind allowed the bluish fumes of the lava flows and the white plumes from the Sudestino and Bocca Nuova to rise more than 1,000 m above the summit. At 1255 the Sudestino lava fountain stopped, although the lava outflow continued, and loud rumblings from the SEC main vent were accompanied by the crashing of bombs.

At 1305 a strong detonation and column of brownish ash (probably old material) rose ~1,500 m above the SE cone. Shortly afterwards the Sudestino lava fountain reappeared with a considerable increase of effusive activity. Lava flows spread rapidly W and E, and the whole summit zone became obscured by bluish fumes, as well as the increasing amount of dust rising from the flanks of the main SE cone from the impact of falling bombs and detritus. During the following hour there was a succession of increasing explosions at the SEC with dark jets of pyroclasts accompanied by loud rumblings, and periods of lower, though still significant, explosive activity. A sustained lava fountain rose 30-40 m high at the Sudestino.

At about 1430 the culmination began, which lasted less than 20 minutes. Some powerful jets of cinders and large bombs from the SEC shot obliquely to the SW while a large eruption column rose ~5 km above the summit. At one point, a small pyroclastic surge extended very rapidly toward the 1971 cone but stopped before reaching it, and the whole central cone suffered a heavy rain of large bombs, some of which reached the Torre del Filosofo building, forcing several bystanders to retreat hastily. At probably the same time, the SEC opened on its NE side (concealed by ashfall and dust), where still larger pyroclastic surges and lava flows were seen (also observed by the guide Alfio Carbonaro). The climax seems to have been reached during the following ten minutes (figure 84), with larger pyroclasts hurled to a maximum of 1,000-1,500 m above the vent. At 1450 explosive activity decreased and ceased within a few minutes. Lava flows continued to spread as large tongues several tens of meters across and 30-40 cm thick, notably to the S and the SW (a flow to the NE could not be observed). These flows were still advancing at a fast rate around 1600 (0.5-1.0 m/minute), but had stopped by nightfall. Activity at that time consisted of very small rare lava bursts at the Sudestino and a continuously glowing point near the E summit of the SE cone, probably fumaroles.

Figure 84. Eruption column from the Southeast Crater of Etna at about 1437 on 16 April 2000. White plumes are coming from Bocca Nuova on the left and the Sudestino spatter cone in the middle foreground. The Southeast Crater cone is completely obscured by the dark eruption plume. Photo courtesy of Jean-Claude Tanguy.

Southeast Crater eruption on 26 April. On the morning of 25 April, whitish fumes occurred intermittently at the SEC, changing after 1340 to small emissions of brownish ash. At nightfall a small glow was seen at the N foot of the SE cone, heralding a sluggish lava flow that had slightly increased after midnight. At 0615 on 26 April the SEC showed strong emissions of white vapors and brownish ash, and a new eruption began at 0655. It culminated towards 0705 with lava fountains several hundred meters high, and ended at 0720. Although the jet of material was apparently vertical, bombs up to 0.5-1.0 m in diameter fell S of the Torre del Filosofo refuge. The fissure on the S flank of the SE cone reopened and emitted a fast lava flow that rapidly reached the area around the 1971 cone and was still active at 0845, but the Sudestino vent remained inactive. A large plume of cinders and juvenile ash drifted towards Monterosso and Fleri on the SE flank.

Aircraft encounters tephra-fall on 26 April. Additional information about this eruption was furnished by Charles Rivière and Robert Clocchiatti, who witnessed the event from a small distance, Giuseppe Scarpinati, who lives in Acireale on the SE flank, and other sources. According to Rivière, the strongest portion of the eruption began at 0655, when lava fountains rose hundreds of meters. A tall eruption column rapidly rose several kilometers above the summit, forming a dark mushroom-shaped cloud of gas and ash. The plume was then carried to the SE, in the direction of Viagrande (which received a heavy shower of scoriaceous lapilli) and Acireale (where abundant pea-sized lapilli fell). From Catania the plume passing just slightly to the N filled about half the sky and blotted out the rising sun.

At 0739 on 26 April, shortly after the end of the main eruptive phase, an Air Europa Airbus 320, which had departed from the Fontanarossa International Airport of Catania in the direction of Milan, entered the fallout zone of the plume at an altitude of ~1,000 m. Apparently the aircraft received windshield damage (scratches but no breaks) caused by impacts of scoriaceous lapilli and was forced to return immediately to the airport in Catania. Passengers told news reporters that it seemed that the airplane entered a zone of turbulence, causing it to vibrate strongly, and then it seemed as though something was scratching one of the side windows, "as if it were hit by a sharp object." According to some news reports the pilot soon informed the passengers about a "technical problem" and told them everything was under control, and that they were to return to Catania. Other sources reported that the passengers did not note anything unusual until the pilot advised them of the return. It is not clear why the airliner ended up under the plume. The eruption had been visible from the airport as well as from all over eastern Sicily, and it occurred quite some time before departure. The pilot said that he did not see the plume ("It was invisible, certainly not a black cloud"), and to his knowledge it had been drifting in the opposite direction. However, the plume was reportedly quite dark as seen from Catania by residents.

This incident is the first of its kind reported at Etna, which is mainly known for low-explosivity emission of voluminous lava flows during flank eruptions. Summit activity on the other hand, is often much more explosive, and this has been the case particularly during the past five years, a period of intense summit activity. In this period nearly 100 episodes of powerful explosive activity generating significant tephra columns have occurred at all four summit craters. SEC generated 51 in the previous three months.

Southeast Crater eruption on 5 May. In the early morning of 5 May, the gaseous emissions of the SEC occurred in pulses similar to those preceding the previous emission. After a small brownish cloud erupted at 1050, weak Strombolian explosions began deep within the SEC main vent, throwing bombs 30-40 m above the crater rim. Soon after 1700 the explosions gradually increased in strength, sending bombs 100 m high. Lava fountains rose to more than 600 m between 1940 and 1955, burying the entire cone under a layer of incandescent material. The eruption stopped abruptly a few minutes later. Lava flows appear to have erupted only on the N side. The tephra fall covered a large sector of the SE part of the mountain. Most of the largest bombs, up to 1 m across, fell in a direction 120° from the SE cone as revealed by a field study of impacts of ballistic projectiles. The Belvedere zone on the rim of the Valle del Bove depression, at 2,760 m elevation and 2 km away from the SEC, was covered by a 10-cm-thick layer of lapilli, cinders, and bombs up to 30-40 cm in diameter. According to R. Basile, bystanders near Monte Zoccolaro, ~7 km from the SEC, had to protect their heads from scoriae, some of which exceeded 10 cm in diameter.

Southeast Crater eruptions on 15 May. According to Etna guide Alfio Ponte, lava began again to flow from the N side of the SE cone late in the evening of 14 May, while Northeast Crater (NEC) displayed Strombolian activity. A fissure seemed to have opened between the NEC and SEC in the early morning of 15 May. At about 1200 the SEC erupted lava fountains for 20 minutes. In the meantime and afterwards the NEC continued its Strombolian explosions mixed with brown ash clouds. Later on 15 May the SEC erupted again at about 2200, with activity culminating about 2315 and then decreasing during the following hours. Lava fountains and flows occurred on the N side. As of 23 May, other eruptions were known to have occurred during the nights of 17-18 May (about 2300-2400), 19-20 May (2200-0300), and 22-23 May (0300-0535), with lava mainly flowing N from the SE cone (observations by Boris Behncke and Giuseppe Scarpinati).

Geological Summary. Mount Etna, towering above Catania on the island of Sicily, has one of the world's longest documented records of volcanism, dating back to 1500 BCE. Historical lava flows of basaltic composition cover much of the surface of this massive volcano, whose edifice is the highest and most voluminous in Italy. The Mongibello stratovolcano, truncated by several small calderas, was constructed during the late Pleistocene and Holocene over an older shield volcano. The most prominent morphological feature of Etna is the Valle del Bove, a 5 x 10 km caldera open to the east. Two styles of eruptive activity typically occur, sometimes simultaneously. Persistent explosive eruptions, sometimes with minor lava emissions, take place from one or more summit craters. Flank vents, typically with higher effusion rates, are less frequently active and originate from fissures that open progressively downward from near the summit (usually accompanied by Strombolian eruptions at the upper end). Cinder cones are commonly constructed over the vents of lower-flank lava flows. Lava flows extend to the foot of the volcano on all sides and have reached the sea over a broad area on the SE flank.

Information Contacts: Jean-Claude Tanguy, Université de Paris 6 and IPGP, Observatoire de Saint-Maur, 4, avenue de Neptune, 94107 Saint-Maur des Fossés Cedex, France; Giuseppe Patané and Santo La Delfa, Università di Catania, Corso Italia 55, 95129 Catania, Italy; Roberto Clocchiatti, Lab. Pierre Sue, C.E.N., Saclay, France; Charles Rivière, C.G.E., France; Boris Behncke, Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche, Palazzo delle Scienze, Università di Catania (DSGUC), Corso Italia 55, 95129 Catania, Italy.