Mount Etna erupting above the Sicilian coast (photo by Mike Lyvers)
Topographic map of Etna10990 ft (3350 m) Highest point in Sicily .
Location: Eastern Sicily, Italy
Lat / Long: 37.7° N, 15.0° E
Volcanic Type: Stratovolcano
Volcanic Status: Active, continuously erupting for years
First Ascent: Ancient times, Greek/Roman or earlier
First Ski Descent:
Skiable Vertical: over 4600 ft (1400 m)
Lift Served Vertical: over 3300 ft (1000 m), before ski lifts
were destroyed in recent eruptions
Mount Etna is by far the largest and highest of Italy's many well-known volcanoes, a huge edifice which occupies much of the eastern part of the island of Sicily. Etna is one of the most active volcanoes in the world, and has long been the object of intense volcanological study. Historical reports of its eruptions date back well over 2000 years, the longest of any volcano, and there are also historical reports of Greek and Roman ascents over 2000 years ago. A large and complex stratovolcano, Etna has four major craters at its summit and numerous fissures, satellite cones, and lava flows along its flanks. Ski lifts (and a summer road) once stretched from 6250-9650 ft (1900-2940 m) elevation up the south side, but significant portions of these have been damaged and destroyed by lava flows since 1985, especially in 2001 and 2002. Despite its southerly location in the warm and sunny Mediterranean, Etna often receives deep winter snows down to 6000 ft (1800 m) and below, and has long been a popular destination for ski mountaineers when it is not erupting.
