Torre del filosofo

The senses tell Torre del Filosofo

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An ever-changing panorama

The area of Torre del Filosofo is the best place to observe the Etna summit craters. However, it is a place of continuous eruptions, especially during the last 20 years, and their shape and profile are constantly changing. Take a good look at them and perhaps even take a photograph, because next time they will not be the same!

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The warmth of the volcano

Sitting on the cones from 2002-03, located in the Torre del Filosofo area, though more than 15 years have passed since the eruption, you can still feel a warmth coming from the ground. This is caused by the gases of the cooling magma down below, which still maintains temperatures of around 40-50°C.

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A cloud of sulphur

In the Torre del Filosofo area, on days when the wind blows from the north-west, it is easy to be enveloped in the cloud of gas that descends along the flanks of the summit craters. It is an acrid smell, in which it is easy to recognise the smell of rotten egg typical of the presence of sulphur. Cover your mouth with a damp cloth if you stay for long periods, it will help you to breathe!

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The rumble of the volcano

When arriving in this area in a period of eruptions or explosions from the summit craters, you can distinctly hear the explosions every 5-10 minutes.

The Jaci river

The senses tell Valle del Leone

Etna, an ever-changing natural laboratory

Valle del Leone and the Elliptical

The Etna viewpoint

Torre del Filosofo: at the base of the summit craters (2950 metres)

The Grand Tour in Sicily

The Red Mountains and the destructive eruption of 1669

Why did Etna form in that specific geographical position?

Malavoglia

The senses tell Val Calanna

The fault system of the “Timpe” of Acireale

Summit crater activity between 2011 and 2019

Etna, wine terroir of excellence

The senses tell The Etna viewpoint

The senses tell Torre del Filosofo

Humankind and the volcano: how should we behave? Volcanic risk

The senses tell Acicastello and Acitrezza

Empedocles and his passion for Etna

The senses tell The Red Mountains

The senses tell The Summit craters

Acireale and its “timpe”

An ever-evolving volcano

The 2001 eruption of Mount Etna, where the approach to volcanoes changed

The first Etnean volcanic events between Aci Castello and Aci Trezza

Etna, the living mountain

Etna: a marvellous group of microclimates and vegetation

Volcanic monitoring and eruption forecasting

The Elliptical, the first great volcano of Etna

Lachea Island and the Aci Trezza Stacks

Val Calanna, the first step towards a single large volcanic structure

The “notches” of snow

The continuous evolution of the Etna summit craters

The eruption of 1928 that destroyed the town of Mascali

The earthquake that changed the geography of eastern Sicily in 1693

The different names of the “Muntagna”

The 1669 eruption in Catania

The senses tell Acireale

A fauna context yet to be discovered

Acireale and reconstruction after the 1693 earthquake