Italy's Volcanoes: The Cradle of Volcanology

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Torre del Filosofo, May 1996

Freezing cold on Etna in mid-May 1996: this poor couple of tourists probably believed it was going to be hot on Etna, an active volcano in springtime in a sub-tropical country (note the shoes of the lady at left). Wrong. The winter of 1995-1996 was the harshest seen on the volcano in many years, and by 12 May, when this photograph was taken, there were still 3-5 m of snow lying near 3000 m elevation, at the Torre del Filosofo mountain hut (visible in the background). On that day a gale-force wind blew at the summit, rendering a visit to the summit craters impossible

Etna photo gallery: 1996
Etna cold and hot, May and September 1995


1996 was the year of the Northeast Crater. Between January and mid-August, the crater was the site of several paroxysmal eruptive episodes and long-lived Strombolian activity accompanied by spectacular effusive activtity. I visited Etna twice during that year, in mid-May and mid-September. On the first occasion I saw the volcano after an unusually heavy winter, and several meters of snow still covered the summit area. Weather conditions there were quite harsh (as can be well recognized in some of the photographs) and it was not possible to visit the then-active Northeast Crater. During the second visit, weather conditions were quite favorable but activity at the crater had diminished notably. I had to wait until mid-1997 to see eruptive activity again, but then I got quite close...

Cold, freezing cold: 12 May 1996

Etna seen from east, May 1996

Left: Etna seen from east (Catania-Messina highway) at sunset on 9 May 1996. Peaks to left and right of summit are the Montagnola and Pizzi Deneri, respectively
Right: Etna seen from the village of Pedara, on the SSE flank, on the morning of 12 May 1996

Etna seen from Pedara, May 1996

Etna cable car, May 1996

The area of the Rifugio Sapienza and the cable car (whose departure station is visible in the background) on 12 May 1996, southern flank of Etna at about 1900 m elevation. The effects of the extraordinarily heavy snow falls of February 1996 are plainly visible, although the snow has melted at this altitude: fences have been bent by the weight of the snow, which attained thicknesses of several meters
Ice sculptures, May 1996 Left: ice shaped by the wind forms beautiful sculptures near Torre del Filosofo on 12 May 1996
Right: a partial view of the icy world of Etna's summit craters as seen from Torre del Filosofo on 12 May 1996. The Southeast Crater, then still inactive, is visible at right
Southeast Crater, May 1996
Torre del Filosofo, May 1996

Left: half-buried in snow, the Torre del Filosofo mountain hut marks the arrival point of 4-wheel-drive tourist buses
Right: tourists returning from lookout to the Southeast Crater to Torre del Filosofo, clearly impressed by the freezing cold on a spring day (12 May 1996)

Torre del Filosofo, May 1996

Valle del Bove, April 1990

Valle del Bove, May 1996

The Valle del Bove revisited: these two photos impressively show the morphological effects of the voluminous 1991-1993 eruption, which affected the southern portion of the enormous collapse depression on Etna's eastern flank. The upper photograph was taken before that eruption, in early April 1990. The same area is seen in the lower photograph after the eruption, in May 1996. The thickness of 1991-1993 lava in some places exceeds 100 m

Hot, but not erupting: 10-20 September 1996

Etna from east, September 1996

The Valle del Bove is plainly visible in this photograph taken from a train shortly after sunrise on 10 September 1996. The summit crater complex is hidden in gas plumes issuing from the craters, while the two conspicuous "shoulders" at left and right are the Montagnola and the Pizzi Deneri, respectively. Gently sloping flat area between the Montagnola and the summit craters is the Piano del Lago, which has changed beyond recognition during the eruptions of 2001 and 2002-2003
Northeast Crater, September 1996

Left: a rootless, spatter-fed lava flow formed near the Northeast Crater (background) during a paroxysmal eruptive episode in November 1995, seen on 14 September 1996
Right: the cone of the Northeast Crater at sunset on 14 September 1996

Northeast Crater, September 1996

Continue to 1997

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