Mount Etna

About Mount Etna:

• It is Europe’s most active volcano and one of the largest in the world.
• Its recorded volcanic activity dates back to 1500 B.C.
• It is on the eastern coast of Sicily.
• It is the highest Mediterranean island mountain and the most active stratovolcano in the world. 
• It is about 3,326 meters high and is the highest peak in Italy South of the Alps.

What are volcanoes?

• Volcanoes are openings, or vents where lava, tephra (small rocks), and steam erupt onto the Earth’s surface.
• These can be on land and in the ocean.
• They are, in part, a result of their own eruptions but also the general formation of our planet, as tectonic plates move.

What is a stratovolcano?

• It is also called a composite volcano.
• This volcanic landform is characterized by a conical shape formed by layers of volcanic material deposited during successive volcanic eruptions.
• These volcanoes tend to slope gently at the base but rise quickly near the summit to form tall mountain peaks.
• 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.