Ash Plume from Mount Etna
NASA image released 12 Aug 2011.
Sicily's Mount Etna is again erupting and spewing ash and lava. On August 12, 2011 at 09:40 UTC (5:40 a.m. EDT), NASA's Terra satellite flew overhead and captured this image of the ash plume blowing in a south-southeasterly direction into the Ionian Sea. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument that flies onboard NASA's Terra satellite captured this image.
Mount Etna is located on the east coast of Sicily and is an active stratovolcano. A "Stratovolcano" is a tall, cone-shaped volcano that was built up with many layers of hardened lava, pumice and volcanic ash.
According to AGI News, the eruptions were occurring at the base of the pit-crater, and similar eruptions have occurred frequently over the last few weeks.
Credit: NASA Goddard/MODIS Rapid Response Team; Text: NASA Goddard/Rob Gutro
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.
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