Editing Mount Etna (section)

==History of volcanic eruptions==
Eruptions of Etna follow multiple patterns. Most occur at the summit, where there are five distinct craters: the Northeast Crater, the Voragine, the Bocca Nuova, and two at the Southeast Crater Complex. Other eruptions occur on the flanks, which have more than 300 vents ranging in size from small holes in the ground to large craters hundreds of metres across. Summit eruptions can be highly explosive and spectacular but rarely threaten the inhabited areas around the volcano. In contrast, flank eruptions can occur down to a few hundred metres [[altitude]], close to or even well within inhabited areas. Numerous villages and small towns lie around or on cones of past flank eruptions. Since the year AD&nbsp;1600, at least 60 flank eruptions and countless summit eruptions have occurred; nearly half of these have happened since the start of the 20th century. Since 2000, Etna has had four flank eruptions – in 2001, 2002–2003, 2004–2005, and 2008–2009. Summit eruptions occurred in 2006, 2007–2008, January–April 2012, in July–October 2012, December 2018, and again in February 2021.

===Geological history===
[[File:Etna storia geologica.png|thumb|upright=1.85|Simplified [[Cross section (geology)|geological cross section]] of the Mount Etna volcanic complex (not to scale), showing its evolution from an early stage of submarine fissural activity, producing pillow lavas and a first [[shield volcano]], to a subsequent mixed effusive and explosive activity building three main [[stratovolcano]] stages (Monte Calanna; Trifoglietto 1; Trifoglietto 2), then to the present Mongibello system (which has developed in two successive stages from about 15,000 years ago). The volcanic activity has gradually shifted from SE to NW (from offshore to onshore). The Valle del Bove is the former eastern flank of the volcano, which collapsed about 64,000 years ago and thus allows the older volcanic edifices to be recognized.]]
[[File:Mount Etna from the south 060313.JPG|thumb|Mount Etna from the south with the smoking peak in the upper left and a lateral crater in the centre]]
Volcanic activity first took place at Etna about 500,000 years ago, with eruptions occurring beneath the sea off the ancient coastline of Sicily.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/Italy/description_italy_volcanics.html|title=Mt. Etna|last=Martin-Schutz, Alicia}}</ref> About 300,000&nbsp;years ago, volcanism began occurring to the southwest of the summit (centre top of the volcano), then activity moved towards the present centre 170,000&nbsp;years ago. Eruptions at this time built up the first major volcanic edifice, forming a stratovolcano in alternating explosive and effusive eruptions. The growth of the mountain was occasionally interrupted by major eruptions, leading to the collapse of the summit to form [[caldera]]s.

From about 35,000 to 15,000&nbsp;years ago, Etna experienced some highly explosive eruptions, generating large [[pyroclastic flow]]s, which left extensive [[ignimbrite]] deposits. Ash from these eruptions has been found as far away as south of [[Rome]]'s border, {{convert|800|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} to the north.

Thousands of years ago, the eastern flank of the mountain experienced a catastrophic collapse, generating an enormous [[volcanic landslide|landslide]] in an event similar to that seen in the [[1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens]]. The landslide left a large depression in the side of the volcano, known as 'Valle del Bove' (Valley of the Ox). Research published in 2006 suggested this occurred around 8,000 years ago, and caused a huge [[tsunami]], which left its mark in several places in the eastern [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]].<ref>It has been suggested that this was the reason why the settlement of [[Atlit Yam]] ([[Israel]]), now below sea level, was suddenly abandoned around that time. See {{Citation |last1=Pareschi |first1=M. T. |first2=E. |last2=Boschi |name-list-style=amp |first3=M. |last3=Favalli |year=2007 |title=Holocene tsunamis from Mount Etna and the fate of Israeli Neolithic communities |journal=Geophysical Research Letters |volume=34 |issue= 16|pages=L16317 |doi=10.1029/2007GL030717 |bibcode=2007GeoRL..3416317P|s2cid=129407252 |doi-access=free }}. This claim has been contested, however, as "there is no evidence of tsunami deposits, nor of sudden and catastrophic changes such as damaged structures, whole animal carcases or evidence of traumatic injury, such as might be expected to result from a tsunami event" (Galili E., Rosen B., Evron M.W., Hershkovitz I., Eshed V., Horwitz L.K. (2020) [https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37367-2_23 Israel: Submerged Prehistoric Sites and Settlements on the Mediterranean Coastline—the Current State of the Art]. In: Bailey G., Galanidou N., Peeters H., Jöns H., Mennenga M. (eds) ''The Archaeology of Europe’s Drowned Landscapes. Coastal Research Library'', vol 35. Springer, Cham). See also, Galili, E., Horwitz, L. K., Hershkovitz, I., Eshed, V., Salamon, A., Zviely, D., Weinstein‐Evron, M., and Greenfield, H. (2008), [https://doi.org/10.1029/2008GL033445 Comment on "Holocene tsunamis from Mount Etna and the fate of Israeli Neolithic communities" by Maria Teresa Pareschi, Enzo Boschi, and Massimiliano Favalli], ''Geophysical Research Letters'', 35, L08311.</ref>

The steep walls of the valley have suffered subsequent collapses on numerous occasions. The [[stratum|strata]] exposed in the valley walls provide an important and easily accessible record of Etna's eruptive history.

The most recent collapse event at the summit of Etna is thought to have occurred about 2,000&nbsp;years ago, forming what is known as the Piano Caldera. This caldera has been almost entirely filled by subsequent lava eruptions but is still visible as a distinct break in the slope of the mountain near the base of the present-day summit cone.

Mount Etna is moving towards the Mediterranean Sea at an average rate of {{convert|14|mm|abbr=on}} per year, the massif sliding on an unconsolidated layer above the older sloping terrain.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Murray |first1=J.B. |last2=van Wyk de Vries |first2=B. |last3=Pitty |first3=A. |date=April 2018 |title=Gravitational sliding of the Mt. Etna massif along a sloping basement |journal=[[Bulletin of Volcanology]] |volume=80 |issue=4 |page= 40|doi=10.1007/s00445-018-1209-1 |pmid=31258237 |pmc=6560784 |bibcode=2018BVol...80...40M |url=http://oro.open.ac.uk/54264/1/445_2018_Article_1209.pdf }}</ref><ref>[https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aat9700 Gravitational collapse of Mount Etna’s southeastern flank]</ref>

===Historical eruptions===

The first known record of eruption at Etna is that of [[Diodorus Siculus]].<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Tanguy | first1 = J. C. | last2 = Condomines | first2 = M. | last3 = Goff | first3 = M. | last4 = Chillemi | first4 = V. | last5 = Delfa | first5 = S. | last6 = Patanè | first6 = G. | doi = 10.1007/s00445-007-0121-x | title = Mount Etna eruptions of the last 2,750 years: Revised chronology and location through archeomagnetic and 226Ra-230Th dating | journal = Bulletin of Volcanology | volume = 70 | issue = 1 | page = 55 | year = 2007 | url = http://www.ipgp.fr/~legoff/Download-PDF/ArcheoItalia/TanguyetAl_Bull_Volc_2007.pdf| bibcode = 2007BVol...70...55T | s2cid = 44241302 }}</ref>

[[File:Eruzione dell'Etna del 1766, incisione colorata di Alessandro D'Anna.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|The 1766 eruption depicted in a coloured [[engraving]] by Italian painter {{ill|Alessandro D'Anna|it}}, {{circa|1770}}]]

In 396&nbsp;BCE, an eruption of Etna reportedly thwarted the [[Carthaginians]] in their attempt to advance on [[Syracuse, Italy|Syracuse]] during the [[Greek-Punic wars#The Second Sicilian War (410 BCE–340 BCE)|Second Sicilian War]].<ref>{{cite book | last=Smith | first=William | title=A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography | publisher=Walton and Maberly | year=1854 | location=London | page=213}}</ref>

A particularly violent explosive ([[Plinian eruption|Plinian]]) summit eruption occurred in 122&nbsp;BCE, and caused heavy [[tephra]] falls to the southeast, including the town of [[Catania]], where many roofs collapsed.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Coltelli |first1=M. |last2=Del Carlo |first2=P. |name-list-style=amp |last3=Vezzoli |first3=L. |year=1998 |title=Discovery of a Plinian basaltic eruption of Roman age at Etna Volcano, Italy |journal=[[Geology (journal)|Geology]] |volume=26 |issue=12 |pages=1095–1098 |doi=10.1130/0091-7613(1998)026<1095:DOAPBE>2.3.CO;2 |bibcode = 1998Geo....26.1095C }}</ref> To help with reconstruction after the devastating effects of the eruption, the Roman government exempted the population of Catania from paying taxes for ten years.<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Chester | first1=David K. | title=The 122 BCE Eruption of Mount Etna: Causes, Impacts, and Aftermath | journal=Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research | volume=104 | issue=1–4 | year=2001 | pages=91–99}}</ref>

An eruption of Etna in 44&nbsp;BCE was followed by famine in [[Han dynasty|China]] (43&nbsp;BCE) the [[Roman Republic]] and [[Ptolemaic Kingdom|Egypt]], with [[Plutarch]] (among others) suggesting a [[Volcanic winter|causal link]];<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Fei |first1=Jie |last2=Zhang |first2=David D. |last3=Lee |first3=Harry F. |date=2016-01-01 |title=1600 AD Huaynaputina Eruption (Peru), Abrupt Cooling, and Epidemics in China and Korea |journal=Advances in Meteorology |volume=2016 |issue=1 |pages=1–12 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons, Ltd |doi=10.1155/2016/3217038 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2016AdMet201617038F }}</ref> however, an eruption of [[Mount Okmok]] early the following year is a more likely cause.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=McConnell |first1=Joseph R. |last2=Sigl |first2=Michael |last3=Plunkett |first3=Gill |last4=Burke |first4=Andrea |last5=Kim |first5=Woon Mi |last6=Raible |first6=Christoph C. |last7=Wilson |first7=Andrew I. |last8=Manning |first8=Joseph G. |last9=Ludlow |first9=Francis |last10=Chellman |first10=Nathan J. |last11=Innes |first11=Helen M. |last12=Yang |first12=Zhen |last13=Larsen |first13=Jessica F. |last14=Schaefer |first14=Janet R. |last15=Kipfstuhl |first15=Sepp |display-authors=3 |date=2020-07-07 |title=Extreme climate after massive eruption of Alaska's Okmok volcano in 43 BCE and effects on the late Roman Republic and Ptolemaic Kingdom |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |language=en |volume=117 |issue=27 |pages=15443–15449 |doi=10.1073/pnas.2002722117 |issn=0027-8424 |pmc=7354934 |pmid=32571905 |bibcode=2020PNAS..11715443M |doi-access=free}}</ref>

The Roman poet [[Virgil]] gave what was probably a first-hand description of an eruption in the ''[[Aeneid]]''.<ref>Aeneid, edition of [[Theodore Chickering Williams|Theodore C. Williams]], ca. 1908 [book III, lines 569–579]</ref>

During the first 1500 years CE, many eruptions went unrecorded (or records have been lost); among the more significant are: (1) an eruption in about 1030 CE near Monte Ilice on the lower southeast flank, which produced a lava flow that travelled about 10&nbsp;km, reaching the sea north of Acireale; the villages of Santa Tecla and Stazzo are built on the broad delta built by this lava flow into the sea;<ref>{{cite journal | last=Chester | first=David K. | title=Eruptions of Mount Etna from 1030 to 1224: Historical Records and Volcanological Implications | journal=Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research | volume=125 | year=2003 | pages=197–211}}</ref> (2) an eruption in about 1160 (or 1224), from a fissure at only {{convert|350|–|450|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} elevation on the south-southeast flank near the village of Mascalucia, whose lava flow reached the sea just to the north of Catania, in the area now occupied by the portion of the city named Ognina.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Chester | first=David K. | title=Historical Eruptions of Mount Etna: 1160 to 1224 | journal=Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research | volume=150 | year=2006 | pages=123–134}}</ref>

[[Rabban Bar Sauma]], a Chinese traveller to the West, recorded the eruption of Etna on 18&nbsp;June 1287.<ref>[https://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/texts/sauma.html The history of the life and travels of Rabban Sawma]</ref>

The [[1669 Etna eruption|1669 eruption]], Etna's most destructive since 122&nbsp;BCE, started on 11&nbsp;March 1669 and produced lava flows that destroyed at least 10 villages on its southern flank before reaching the city walls of the town of [[Catania]] five weeks later, on 15&nbsp;April. The lava was largely diverted by these walls into the sea to the south of the city, filling the harbour of Catania. A small portion of lava eventually broke through a fragile section of the city walls on the western side of Catania and destroyed a few buildings before stopping in the rear of the Benedictine monastery, without reaching the centre of the town. Contrary to widespread reports of up to 15,000 (or even 20,000) human fatalities caused by the lava,<ref>"[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/194532/Mount-Etna Mount Etna (volcano, Italy)]". (the Encyclopædia Britannica has been wrongly cited as one source of this false information).</ref> contemporaneous accounts written both in Italian and English<ref>The ''Encyclopaedia Britannica'' 5th edition (1817) quotes from the eyewitness report of Lord Winchelsea, Ambassador to Constantinople, to the Court of England. It happens not to mention casualties. {{cite book|title=Encyclopaedia Britannica: Or, A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and Miscellaneous Literature, Enlarged and Improved|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-icoAAAAMAAJ|edition=5th|volume=1|year=1823|publisher=A. Constable|location=Edinburgh|pages=248–249}} See also: {{cite book|author1=Charles Hutton|author2=Georges Shaw|author3=Richard Pearson|title=The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, from Their Commencement, in 1665, to the Year 1800; Abridged...: From 1665 to 1672. 1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zPGomGMoQJoC&pg=PA383|year=1809|location=London|pages=357–358; 383–387; 637–638}}</ref> mention no deaths related to the 1669 eruption (but give very precise figures of the number of buildings destroyed, the area of cultivated land lost, and the economic damage). Therefore, it is uncertain where the enormous number of fatalities can be attributed. One possibility is confusion between this eruption and an earthquake that devastated southeast Sicily (including Catania) 24 years later in [[1693 Sicily earthquake|1693]]. A study on the damage and fatalities caused by eruptions of Etna in historical times reveals that only 77 human deaths are attributable with certainty to eruptions of Etna, most recently in 1987 when two tourists were killed by a sudden explosion near the summit.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-04-18-mn-1037-story.html |title=Eruption of Snow-Covered Mt. Etna Kills 2 Tourists and Injures 7 Others |newspaper=LA Times |access-date=2 June 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://boris.vulcanoetna.it/ETNA_andman2.html |title=Etna and Man |publisher=Boris.vulcanoetna.it |access-date=2 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722070430/http://boris.vulcanoetna.it/ETNA_andman2.html |archive-date=22 July 2011 }}</ref>

Since 1750, seven of Etna's eruptions have had durations of more than five years, more than any other volcano except Vesuvius.<ref name="GVPDatabase2020-12">{{cite journal | url=https://volcano.si.edu/faq/index.cfm?question=longesteruptions | title=What volcanoes have had the longest eruptions? | publisher=[[Smithsonian Institution]] | journal=Global Volcanism Program — Volcanoes of the World (Version 4.9.2) | editor-last=Venzke | editor-first=E. | date=10 December 2020 | doi=10.5479/si.GVP.VOTW4-2013 | access-date=15 December 2020}}</ref>

===Modern-day eruptions (1923–present day)===
As "Europe's most active volcano",<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite web|url=https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/1614/the-continuing-eruption-of-mt-etna |title=The Continuing Eruption of Mt. Etna |publisher=Earthobservatory.nasa.gov |date= 23 July 2001|access-date=15 February 2022}}</ref> eruptions occur frequently (with as many as 16 eruptions taking place in 2001).<ref name="autogenerated1"/> However, several eruptions of note have occurred over the last century.

[[File:Paroxysm at Etna, 16-17 November 2013.webm|thumb|Video of Etna's November 2013 eruption]]
A major eruption took place in June 1923, lasting from 6&nbsp;June until 29&nbsp;June.<ref>{{cite journal | url=https://www.nature.com/articles/112546a0.pdf | doi=10.1038/112546a0 | title=The Recent Eruption of Etna | year=1923 | last=Ponte | first=Gaetano | journal=Nature | volume=112 | issue=2815 | pages=546–548 | bibcode=1923Natur.112..546P | s2cid=6883748 }}</ref> A large lava flow from an eruption in 1928 led to the destruction of a population centre for the first time since the 1669 eruption. The eruption started high on Etna's northeast flank on 2&nbsp;November. Then new eruptive fissures opened at decreasing elevations down the flank of the volcano. The third and most vigorous of these fissures opened late on 4&nbsp;November at an unusually low elevation, approximately {{convert|1200|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} above sea-level, in a zone known as Ripe della Naca. The village of [[Mascali]], lying down-slope of the Ripe della Naca, was almost completely destroyed in two days. Only a church and a few surrounding buildings survived in the north part of the village, called Sant'Antonino or "il quartiere". During the last days of the eruption, the flow interrupted the Messina-Catania railway line and destroyed the train station of Mascali. The event was used by [[Benito Mussolini]]'s [[Italian fascism|fascist regime]] for propaganda purposes, with the evacuation, aid, and rebuilding operations being presented as models of fascist planning. Mascali was rebuilt on a new site, and its church contains the Italian fascist symbol of the torch, placed above the statue of [[Jesus Christ]].<ref name="Duncan_etal_1996">{{cite journal|title=The 1928 Eruption of Mount Etna Volcano, Sicily, and the Destruction of the Town of Mascali|last1=Duncan|first1=Angus M.|last2=Dibben|first2=Christopher|last3=Chester|first3=David K.|last4=Guest|first4=John E.|journal=Disasters|year=1996|volume=20|issue=1|pages=1–20|doi=10.1111/j.1467-7717.1996.tb00511.x|pmid=8867507|bibcode=1996Disas..20....1D }}</ref>
{{multiple image
|align=left
|direction=vertical
|width=240
|image1=Etna eruption seen from the International Space Station.jpg
|caption1=
|image2=Etna smoke seen from space.jpg
|caption2=Etna's 2002 eruption, photographed from the [[International Space Station|ISS]]
|image3=Etna's NSEC (New South East Crater) eruption.jpg
|caption3=Long exposure image of a "dual-vent" eruption from Mount Etna's NSEC (New South East Crater)

}}

Other major 20th-century eruptions occurred in 1949, 1971, 1979, 1981, 1983 and 1991–1993. In 1971, lava buried the Etna Observatory (built in the late 19th century), destroyed the first generation of the Etna cable-car, and seriously threatened several small villages on Etna's east flank. In March 1981, the town of Randazzo on the northwestern flank of Etna narrowly escaped destruction by unusually fast-moving lava flows. That eruption was remarkably similar to one in 1928 that destroyed Mascali. The 1991–1993 eruption saw the town of [[Zafferana]] threatened by a lava flow, but successful diversion efforts saved the town with the loss of only one building a few hundred metres from the town's margin. Initially, such efforts consisted of the construction of earth barriers built perpendicularly to the flow direction; it was hoped that the eruption would stop before the artificial basins created behind the barriers would be completely filled. Instead, the eruption continued, and lava surmounted the barriers, heading directly toward Zafferana. Engineers then decided to use explosives near the source of the lava flow, to disrupt a very efficient lava tube system through which the lava travelled for up to {{convert|7|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} without losing significant heat or fluidity. The main explosion on 23&nbsp;May 1992 destroyed the tube and forced the lava into a new artificial channel, far from Zafferana, and it would have taken months to re-establish a long lava tube. Shortly after the blasting, the rate of lava emission dropped, and during the remainder of the eruption (until 30&nbsp;March 1993) the lava never advanced close to the town again.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Barberi |first1=F. |last2=Carapezza |first2=M. L. |last3=Valenza |first3=M. |last4=Villari |first4=L. |year=1993 |title=The control of lava flow during the 1991–1992 eruption of Mt. Etna |journal=Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research |volume=56|issue=1–2 |pages=1–34 |doi=10.1016/0377-0273(93)90048-V |bibcode = 1993JVGR...56....1B }}</ref>

[[File:Valle del bove.jpg|thumb|A lateral crater of the 2002–2003 eruption near the Torre del Filosofo, about {{convert|450|m|ft|abbr=on}} below Etna's summit]]
[[File:EtnaHaus.JPG|thumb|House destroyed by lava on the slopes of Etna]]

In July–August 2001, following six years (1995–2001) of unusually intense activity at the four summit craters of Etna, the volcano produced its first flank eruption since 1991–1993. This eruption, which involved activity from seven distinct eruptive fissures mostly on the south slope of the volcano, was well covered by the mass-media because it occurred at the height of the tourist season and numerous reporters and journalists were already in Italy to cover the [[G8 Genoa|G8 summit in Genoa]]. It also occurred close to one of the tourist areas on the volcano, and thus was easily accessible. Part of the "Etna Sud" tourist area, including the arrival station of the Etna cable car, were damaged by this eruption, which otherwise was a rather modest-sized event by Etna standards.

In 2002–2003, a much larger eruption threw up a huge column of ash that could easily be seen from space and fell as far away as [[Libya]], {{convert|600|km|mi|abbr=on}} south across the [[Mediterranean Sea]]. Seismic activity in this eruption caused the eastern flanks of the volcano to slip by up to two metres, and many houses on the flanks of the volcano experienced structural damage. The eruption also completely destroyed the tourist station Piano Provenzana, on the northeastern flank of the volcano, and part of the tourist station "Etna Sud" around the Rifugio Sapienza on the south flank. Footage from the eruptions was recorded by [[Lucasfilm]] and integrated into the landscape of the planet [[Mustafar]] in the 2005 film ''[[Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hollywoodjesus.com/movie/star_wars_ep_3/notes.pdf |title=press_text_booklet.indd |access-date=2 June 2011}}</ref> The Rifugio Sapienza is near the site of a [[Gondola lift|cable car]] station which had previously been destroyed in the 1983 eruption; it has now been rebuilt. Following a slow and non-destructive lava outflow on the upper southeastern flank between September 2004 and March 2005, intense eruptions occurred at the Southeast Crater in July–December 2006. These were followed by four episodes of lava fountaining, again at the Southeast Crater, on 29&nbsp;March, 11&nbsp;April, 29&nbsp;April and 7&nbsp;May 2007. Ash emissions and [[Strombolian eruption|Strombolian explosions]] started from a vent on the eastern side of the Southeast Crater in mid-August 2007.

On 4 September 2007, a major episode of lava fountaining occurred from the new vent on the east side of the Southeast Crater, also producing a plume of ash and scoriae which fell over the east flank of the volcano. A lava flow travelled about {{convert|4.5|km|mi|abbr=on}} into the uninhabited Valle del Bove. This eruption was visible far into the plains of Sicily, ending the following morning between the hours of 5&nbsp;am and 7&nbsp;am local time. [[Catania-Fontanarossa Airport]] shut down operations during the night for safety precautions.{{verify source|date=April 2013}}

An eruption on the morning of 13 May 2008, immediately to the east of Etna's summit craters was accompanied by a swarm of more than 200 earthquakes and significant ground deformation in the summit area. The eruption continued at a slowly diminishing rate for 417 days, until 6&nbsp;July 2009, making this the longest flank eruption of Etna since the 1991–1993 eruption that lasted 473 days. Previous eruptions, in 2001, 2002–2003, and 2004–2005 had lasted three weeks, three months, and six months, respectively. Lava flows advanced 6.5&nbsp;km during the first few days of this eruption but thereafter stagnated at many minor distances from the vents; during the last months of the eruption lava rarely advanced more than one kilometre downslope.

[[File:Mount Etna 2001 Flow 061613.JPG|thumb|Southern flank of Mount Etna showing lateral cones and flow from the eruption of 2001]]

Through January 2011 to February 2012, the summit craters of Etna were the site of intense activity. Frequent eruptions and ash columns forced the authorities to shut down the Catania airport on several occasions.
<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tvnz.co.nz/world-news/italy-s-mt-etna-erupts-3997812|title=Italy's Mt Etna erupts – WORLD News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Ken Kremer |url=http://www.universetoday.com/82516/spectacular-eruptions-of-mt-etna-in-sicily-from-space-and-earth/ |title=Spectacular Eruptions of Mt. Etna in Sicily from Space and Earth |work=Universetoday.com |date=15 January 2011 |access-date=2 June 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/mount-etna-eruption-caught-in-stunning-679012 |title=There she blows! Stunning images of Mount Etna eruption |last=Evans |first=Natalie |work=Daily Mirror |date=9 February 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160211084303/https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/mount-etna-eruption-caught-in-stunning-679012 |archive-date=11 February 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com/2011/10/23/eruption-of-mt-etna-closes-airport-in-catania/ |title=Eruption of Mt. Etna closes airport in Catania |website=AGI.it |date=23 October 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230312221115/https://theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com/2011/10/23/eruption-of-mt-etna-closes-airport-in-catania/ |archive-date=12 March 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ct.ingv.it/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=363 |title=INGV – Etna Observatory |publisher=Ct.ingv.it |access-date=2 June 2011 |archive-date=14 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120414231713/http://www.ct.ingv.it/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=363 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13381243 |title=BBC News – Footage shows Mount Etna spewing lava and ash |publisher=Bbc.co.uk |date=12 May 2011 |access-date=2 June 2011}}</ref>
The July 2011 episode also endangered the Sapienza Refuge, the main tourist hub on the volcano, but the lava flow was successfully diverted.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}} In 2014, a flank eruption started involving lava flows and [[strombolian]] eruptions. This was the first flank eruption since 2008–09.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/etna/current-activity.html |title=Etna Volcano (Italy): Eruption Update & Current Activity |publisher=Volcanodiscovery.com |date=10 February 2022 |access-date=15 February 2022}}</ref>

On 3 December 2015, an eruption occurred which climaxed between 03:20 and 04:10 local time. The Voragine crater exhibited a lava fountain that reached {{convert|1|km|ft|abbr=on}} in height, with an ash plume which reached {{convert|3|km|ft|abbr=on}} in height.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/2015/12/italys-etna-unleashes-a-short-but-spectacular-eruption/|title=Italy's Etna Unleashes a Short but Spectacular Eruption|magazine=Wired|first=Erik|last=Klemetti|date=3 December 2015|access-date=3 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/etna/current-activity.html|title=Etna volcano – eruption update|work=Volcano Discovery|date=3 December 2015|access-date=3 December 2015}}</ref> The activity continued on the following days, with an ash plume that reached {{convert|7|km|ft|abbr=on}} in height that forced Catania airport to shut down for a few hours.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://corrieredelmezzogiorno.corriere.it/catania/cronaca/15_dicembre_04/etna-nuova-fontana-lava-voragine-aeroporto-operativo-4f4c7456-9a72-11e5-9894-0d6d2be3d098.shtml|title=Etna show, nuova fontana di lava: non-si ferma l'emissione di cenere|work=Corriere della Sera|language=it|date=4 December 2015|access-date= 5 December 2015}}</ref> Volcanic gas emissions from this volcano are measured by a [[Multi-Component Gas Analyzer System|multi-component gas analyzer system]], which detects pre-eruptive degassing of rising magmas, improving [[prediction of volcanic activity]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Forecasting Etna eruptions by real-time observation of volcanic gas composition |journal=Geology |volume=35 |issue=12 |page=1115 |date=1 December 2008 |doi=10.1130/G24149A.1 |last1=Aiuppa |first1=Alessandro |last2=Moretti |first2=Roberto |last3=Federico |first3=Cinzia |last4=Giudice |first4=Gaetano |last5=Gurrieri |first5=Sergio |last6=Liuzzo |first6=Marco |last7=Papale |first7=Paolo |last8=Shinohara |first8=Hiroshi |last9=Valenza |first9=Mariano |bibcode=2007Geo....35.1115A }}</ref>

An eruption on 16 March 2017 injured 10 people, including a [[BBC News]] television crew, after magma exploded upon contact with snow.<ref>{{cite news |last=Balmer |first=Crispian |date=16 March 2017 |title=Volcanic explosion on Mount Etna injures 10 people |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-etna-idUSKBN16N270 |work=[[Reuters]] |access-date=16 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-39293086|title=Mount Etna: BBC crew caught up in volcano blast|date=16 March 2017|work=BBC News|access-date=16 March 2017|language=en-GB}}</ref>

An eruption on 24 December 2018, following a dyke intrusion at shallow depth, spewed ash into the air, forcing the closure of airspace around Mount Etna. Two days later, a magnitude 4.9 earthquake shook the town of Fleri and surrounding towns and hamlets in the Province of Catania, damaging buildings and injuring four people.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/26/mount-etna-magnitude-earthquake-italy-sicily|title=Mount Etna: 4.8-magnitude earthquake jolts Sicily|work=The Guardian|agency=Agence France-Presse|location=Rome|date=26 December 2018|access-date=26 December 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://cnt.rm.ingv.it/event/21285011|title=Terremoto 4 km NE Viagrande (CT), Magnitudo Mw 4.9, 26 dicembre 2018 ore 03:19:14 (Fuso Orario Italia) » INGV Centro Nazionale Terremoti|website=cnt.rm.ingv.it|access-date=23 March 2019}}</ref>

Beginning in February 2021, Mount Etna began a series of explosive eruptions, which have had an impact on nearby villages and cities, with volcanic ash and rock falling as far away as Catania. {{As of|2021|03|12}}, the volcano has erupted 11 times in three weeks.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://weather.com/photos/news/2021-03-10-mount-etna-eruption-sicily-italy |title=Mount Etna Erupts for the 11th Time in Three Weeks (PHOTOS) |first=Nicole |last=Bonaccorso |date=10 March 2021 |publisher=The Weather Channel |access-date=14 March 2022}}</ref> The eruptions have consistently sent ash clouds over {{convert|10|km|ft|abbr=on}} into the air, closing Sicilian airports. There have been no reports of injuries.{{Update inline|date=March 2022}}

In February 2022 there were two eruptions. On 11&nbsp;February 2022, at 6&nbsp;pm, there were lava fountains from the Southeast Crater which had become a single Strombolian eruption by 7&nbsp;pm. Between 10&nbsp;pm and 11&nbsp;pm, it had reached a height of almost 1,000&nbsp;m and lava bombs were thrown at a considerable distance. Ash was blown west by the wind and then turned southeast. There was large lava flow in the western flank. On 19&nbsp;February at 10.15&nbsp;am there was an explosive eruption, again from the Southeast Crater, high lava fountains and lava flows, the longest of which went down the north-eastern flank towards the Bove Valley.<ref>[https://www.go-etna.com/etna-aktiv/mt-etna-eruption-new-update/ GeoEtna]</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210216-etna-spews-smoke-and-ashes-in-spectacular-new-eruption|title=Etna spews smoke and ashes in spectacular new eruption|website=France24|date=16 February 2021|access-date=22 February 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author1=Washington Post Staff |title=Mount Etna volcano in Italy puts on spectacular show |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/photography/interactive/2022/mount-etna-eruption-photos/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=11 February 2022 |date=11 February 2022}}</ref>

On 29 May 2022 a sudden collapse of the Southeast Crater created a fracture on its northern flank at an elevation of about {{convert|2800|m|ft|abbr=on}}. A small lava flow emerged and headed in the direction of the Leone Valley, just above the much larger Bove Valley. It continued for three days and was accompanied by small and sporadic eruptions from two of the many vents at the top of this crater.<ref>[https://www.go-etna.com/etna-aktiv/mount-etna-new-fracture-and-lava-stream-on-may-2022/ GeoEtna]</ref><ref>[https://epod.usra.edu/blog/2022/09/mount-etna-eruption-of-may-29-2022.html#:~:text=This%20flow%20emanated%20from%20a,pour%20over%20the%20Etnean%20towns. Mount Etna Eruption of 29 May 2022]</ref>

Etna erupted once again on 4 July 2024 causing the [[Catania–Fontanarossa Airport|Catania Airport]] to close due to [[volcanic ash]] in the air. The airport reopened the next day.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sicily's Catania airport reopens after Mount Etna eruption |url=https://phys.org/news/2024-07-flights-slowly-resume-sicily-catania.html |access-date=6 July 2024 |website=phys.org |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://apnews.com/video/italy-volcanoes-sicily-b4544036b9e147f386986318ec32d91b |title=Watch: Spectacular Mount Etna eruption in Sicily |language=en |access-date=5 July 2024 |via=apnews.com}}</ref>

On 14 August 2024, Mt. Etna erupted violently sending an ash cloud 9.5&nbsp;km into the atmosphere. Catania Airport was forced to close the following day.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Etna eruption closes Catania Airport|url= https://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/world/130746/etna_eruption_closes_catania_airport |access-date=15 August 2024 |website=maltatoday.org |language=en}}</ref>

====Volcanic explosivity index of recent eruptions====

The [[Global Volcanism Program]] has assigned a [[Volcanic Explosivity Index]] (VEI) to all of Mount Etna's eruptions since January 1955:<ref name="VEIdata">{{cite gvp|name=Etna: Eruptive History|vtab=Eruptions|vn=211060|access-date=26 June 2021}}</ref>

{{Bar chart
| title       = 
| label_type  = VEI
| data_type   = Number of eruptions (total=49)
| bar_width   = 35
| width_units = em
| data_max    = 80
| label1   = VEI 0
| data1    = 1
| label2   = VEI 1
| data2    = 17
| label3   = VEI 2
| data3    = 24
| label4   = VEI 3
| data4    = 7
}}

====Vortex rings====
[[File:Smoke ring above Mount Etna.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|Vortex ring above Mount Etna observed on 9 August 2023]]
[[File:Provincia di Catania colori.svg|thumb|upright=0.8|Map of municipalities in the Metropolitan City of Catania (Mount Etna at top right)]]
In the 1970s Etna erupted [[vortex ring]]s,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stromboli.net/etna/etna00/etna0002photovideo-en.html|title=SwissEduc – Stromboli online – Etna 2000|website=www.stromboli.net}}</ref> one of the first recorded events of this type, which are extremely rare. This happened again in 2000.<ref>{{cite news
  | title = Etna hoops it up
  | work = BBC News
  | date = 31 March 2000
  | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/696953.stm
  | access-date = 9 October 2008}}
</ref> Video footage of the 8&nbsp;June 2000 event was captured.<ref>{{cite news
  | title = Erupting Mt. Etna coughs up a smoke ring
  | publisher = WJLA (ABC) Storm Watch 7
  | date = 16 August 2011
  | url = http://www.wjla.com/blogs/weather/2011/08/erupting-mt-etna-coughs-up-a-smoke-ring-video--12367.html
  | access-date = 15 April 2013
  | archive-date = 2 February 2014
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140202203909/http://www.wjla.com/blogs/weather/2011/08/erupting-mt-etna-coughs-up-a-smoke-ring-video--12367.html
  | url-status = dead
  }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Geoff|first=Mackley|title=Mt Etna – Sicily, Italy – the greatest show on earth !|url=http://www.emergency.co.nz/archive/etna.html|publisher=Geoff Mackley|access-date=15 April 2013|archive-date=30 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121230110236/http://www.emergency.co.nz/archive/etna.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Another event occurred on 11&nbsp;April 2013.<ref>{{cite news
  | title = Mount Etna blows smoke rings during volcanic eruptions
  | publisher = NBC News
  | date = 12 April 2013
  | url = http://photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/12/17720274-mount-etna-blows-smoke-ring-during-volcanic-eruptions
  | access-date = 15 April 2013}}</ref> Other similar events occurred during the summer of 2023 (see photo) and 2024.<ref>{{cite news |title=Vortex rings made of water vapour rise from Italy's Mount Etna volcano |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-08/mount-etna-volcanic-vortex-rings/103680958 |access-date=8 April 2024 |publisher =[[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]] |date=8 April 2024}}</ref>