MOUNT ETNA - GEOGRAPHY
News: Mount Etna puffs 'smoke rings'
in rare display
What's in the news?
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Italy's Mount Etna has been putting on a show by blowing
near-perfect circles into the Sicilian sky.
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A new crater opened on the summit of Europe's
largest active volcano leading to an unusual display of the so-called 'smoke
rings'.
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The rings are made of gases and propelled by a
circular vent in the volcano.
Mount Etna:
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It is Europe’s
most active volcano and one of the largest in the world.
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Its recorded volcanic activity dates back to 1500
B.C.
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It is on the eastern coast of Sicily, Italy.
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It is the highest
Mediterranean island mountain and the most active stratovolcano (composite
volcano) in the world.
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It is about 3,326 meters high and is the highest
peak in Italy South of the Alps.
Go back to basics:
Volcanoes:
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Volcanoes are openings, or vents where lava, tephra
(small rocks), and steam erupt onto the Earth’s surface.
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These can be on land and in the ocean.
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They are, in part, a result of their own eruptions
but also the general formation of our planet, as tectonic plates move.
Stratovolcano:
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It is also called a composite volcano.
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This volcanic landform is characterized by a conical shape formed by layers of volcanic
material deposited during successive volcanic eruptions.
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These volcanoes tend to slope gently at the base
but rise quickly near the summit to form tall mountain peaks.
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They are typically found above subduction zones,
and they are often part of large volcanically active regions, such as the Ring
of Fire that frames much of the Pacific Ocean.