Sicily
Tales From Three 18th Century Eruptions to Understand Past and Present Behaviour of Etna
Rosa Anna Corsaro, Stefano Branca, Emanuela De Beni and Jean-Claude Tanguy
problematic: Tales From Three 18th Century Eruptions to Understand Past and Present Behaviour of Etna
description: The structure of an active volcano is highly dependent on the interplay between the geodynamic context, the tectonic assessment as well as the magmatic processes in the plumbing system. This complex scenario, widely explored at Etna during the last 40 years, is nevertheless incomplete for the recent historical activity. In 1763 two eruptions occurred along the west flank of the volcano. There, an eruption started on 6th February and formed the scoria cone of Mt. Nuovo and a roughly 4-km-long lava flow field. Another small scoria cone, known as Mt. Mezza Luna, is not dated in historical sources. It is located just 1 km eastward of Mt. Nuovo and produced a 700 m long flow field.