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 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 5000 years ago was followed by formation of the modern edifice. The active summit vents are located at the head of the Sciara del Fuoco, a prominent horseshoe-shaped scarp formed about 5000 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.
The rising sun brightens the slopes of Stromboli volcano, the "Lighthouse of the Mediterranean." This view shows the NE tip of the island with the Rina Grande valley at the left. The principal historically active vent of Stromboli lies at the head of the Sciarra del Fuoco, a prominent horseshoe-shaped scarp on the opposite side of the island. 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.
Photo by Guiseppina Kysar, 1999 (Smithsonian Institution).
Last updated 2021-05-19 16:00:02
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