SE Crater with its intracrater cone viewed from the southeastern slope of Etna's summit cone on the evening of 11 July. The intracrater cone is still much lower than the western rim of the crater, and lava is covering the crater floor around the intracrater cone. An active lava flow is spilling down the southern side of the intracrater cone from a source immediately below the explosive vent.

Similar to previous, but later that same evening, with intense Strombolian activity from the summit vent of the intracrater cone. This was first visit to SE Crater in 1997 by Boris Behncke; previously the activity had been at lower levels but included the growth of a lava dome, a rare phenomenon at Etna which in this case was due to the very low effusion rates.

Two vents erupting on the intracrater cone on the evening of 19 July 1997, seen here from the southwestern rim of SE Crater. Lava is flowing from the larger and more vigorous vent at right towards the southeastern rim of SE Crater, forming the first small overflow onto the outer flanks of the SE cone since 1990.

View from the "Fortino" on the high western rim of SE Crater into the active vent of the intracrater cone, 25 July 1997. The vent is not erupting in this moment, and the level of magma in the conduit is low.

High magma column within the active vent, about 30 minutes after the previous photo. The top of the magma column is vigorously degassing, producing Strombolian activity.

Simultaneously with the rise in the level of the magma column (in the active summit vent at right), lava emission increases from a vent on the northeastern flank of the intracrater cone (at left), feeding small lava lobes that move onto the northern crater floor.

Intracrater cone seen from "Fortino", 29 July 1997. The explosive vent at the summit of the conelet lies at right; lava is issuing from a vent on the northeastern flank of the conelet. Note abundance of freshly fallen black scoriae in the foreground.

Zoom on the explosive summit vent of the intracrater cone during a Strombolian burst. The southern (right) side of the crater rim has grown several meters since the 25 July 1997 visit (see photo at center in the previous sequence).

Vigorous eruptive activity at the intracrater cone on the evening of 5 August 1997, seen from the western rim of SE Crater.

Another view taken that same evening but somewhat later, showing a second vent spraying incandescent pyroclastics in a highly inclined jet onto the northwestern flank of the cone.

Similar to the previous, but only the main vent active. Note the lights of the dense urban agglomerate on the eastern flank of Etna in the right background.

Intracrater cone seen from the south (about 50 m distant from the base) on 20 May 1998. A "bulge" with an elongate graben on its top (oriented radially away from the intracrater cone) is forming on the southern flank of the cone as magma is pushing outward from the main conduit, and a small volume of lava is extruding at the front of this bulge. This lava is visible as a dark patch below the hightest point of the cone at left. In the moment when this photo was taken, the extrusive process was still going on, resulting in frequent rockfalls from the steep slopes of the bulge, and very slow lava extrusion persisted for at least some days (see 4 June photo at right for comparison).

Close-up view of the advancing "bulge" on the southern base of the intracrater cone on 20 May 1998, taken in the moment of a Strombolian burst at the main vent (upper left). The fresh extruding lava at the front of the graben-topped bulge is visible as a dark lobe below the exploding summit mound while the graben extends to the right of it.

Intracrater cone with extrusive "bulge" and lava lobe extruded from it seen from 50 m distance on 4 June 1998. This is about the same viewpoint as in the left photograph. The small lava lobe visible in the 20 May image has developed into a fan-shaped lobe extending some 20-25 m from the point of lava emission; no significant outward movement of the "bulge" has occurred since then, but heat emitted from its interior has caused strong alteration at its surface.