Series of explosions at Stromboli volcano, Italy

A series of explosions were registered at Stromboli volcano’s North crater area, starting at 02:56 UTC on July 25, 2022. The strongest explosion took place at 02:56:30 UTC.

The material produced by the eruption fell abundantly along the Sciara del Fuoco, while there was no significant fall of coarse material in the Pizzo area.

After the most intense initial explosive phase, Strombolian activity is continuing at the mouth N2 of the North crater area, with frequent explosions of low intensity.

The seismic signal after the maximum values reached at 2:56 UTC showed a rapid decline and by 03:40 UTC the values dropped to those similar to before the eruption.

Geological summary

Spectacular incandescent nighttime explosions at this volcano have long attracted visitors to the “Lighthouse of the Mediterranean.”

Stromboli, the NE-most of the Aeolian Islands, has lent its name to the frequent mild explosive activity that has characterized its eruptions throughout much of historical time.

The small, 924-m-high (3 031 feet) island is the emergent summit of a volcano that grew in two main eruptive cycles, the last of which formed the western portion of the island.

The Neostromboli eruptive period from about 13 000 to 5 000 years ago was followed by formation of the modern Stromboli edifice. The active summit vents are located at the head of the Sciara del Fuoco, a prominent horseshoe-shaped scarp formed about 5 000 years ago as a result of the most recent of a series of slope failures that extend to below sea level.

The modern volcano has been constructed within this scarp, which funnels pyroclastic ejecta and lava flows to the NW. Essentially continuous mild strombolian explosions, sometimes accompanied by lava flows, have been recorded for more than a millennium.²

References:

¹ Comunicato Stromboli – INGV – July 25, 2022

² Stromboli – Geological summary – GVP

Featured image credit: INGV-OE