Last night’s powerful eruption of Mount Etna in Sicily, Italy, created a volcanic storm so powerful it illuminated the sky with dramatic lightning…
The eruption started last night and continues to spit volcanic ash more than a kilometer above sea level. Mount Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in Europe and erupts frequently. You would think that all this activity would scare the locals…
but even though it is one of the most active and dangerous volcanoes on the continent, there are about a million people living on the slopes of Mount Etna, and it is a popular tourist attraction…
These dirty thunderstorms are thought to occur when friction between ash particles creates an electric charge that triggers lightning strikes around large clumps of ash…
the volcano drives tourism to the area whenever an eruption destroys the cable car to the top of the volcano, it gets rebuilt. The rubble is left in place for passersby to see on their way up the mountain…
The volcano also supports the local wine-making industry. The microclimate created by volcanoes and minerals in the soil is beneficial for grapes. One winemaker even told Earther in 2019 that…
