Sezione di Catania - Osservatorio Etneo reported that a new phase of intermittent effusive activity at Stromboli, which consisted of small overflows of lava from the crater terrace, began on 8 February and continued until the morning of 17 February. During this interval several episodes of effusive activity occurred in the N and NW sectors of the Sciara del Fuoco, producing lava flows that traveled several tens to a few hundred meters.

Lava overflows ceased on the afternoon of 10 February, but effusive activity resumed in the early morning hours of the next day. On the afternoon of 11 February, three small lava flows were visible on the upper slope of the Sciara del Fuoco; the westernmost flow traveled a few hundred meters. That evening two of these flows remained active and continued to be fed until the morning of 12 February. The more westerly of the flows then stopped, whereas the flow traveling N continued until the early afternoon.

After an interval of non-visibility due to inclement weather conditions, a new lava flow traveled NW in the evening of 12 February. This flow progressively diminished, but was still active at about 1100 on 13 February.

The vent N2, perched on the NW rim of the crater terrace, produced continuous spattering, which also fed a small lava flow parallel to the already active flow. Spattering continued for a few hours, and then diminished during the late afternoon of 14 February. Subsequently, effusive activity diminished considerably, and only very small lava overflows extended a few tens of meters NW. In the morning of 17 February, all effusive activity ceased and mild Strombolian activity resumed.

Geological Summary. Spectacular incandescent nighttime explosions at Stromboli have long attracted visitors to the "Lighthouse of the Mediterranean" in the NE Aeolian Islands. This volcano 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 took place between about 13,000 and 5,000 years ago. The active summit vents are located at the head of the Sciara del Fuoco, a prominent scarp that formed about 5,000 years ago due to a series of slope failures which extends 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.

Source: Sezione di Catania - Osservatorio Etneo (INGV)