The thick plume of volcanic ash and smoke coming from Mt. Etna has tapered to a thin line over the course of the past four weeks, but a thermal signature was still being detected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra satellite on November 23, 2002. According to news reports, a river of lava continues to flow down the volcano’s southern slopes and is threatening a tourist town. Several small earthquakes rumbled through the island on Sunday, Nov. 24. The plume is streaming eastward over the Mediterranean Sea, and is casting a dark shadow to its north. Mt. Etna began erupting on October 27, 2002.
Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Sicily's Mt. Etna began erupting on Oct. 27, and two months later is still emitting a plume of ash and smoke.
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