INGV reported that during 9-15 May activity at Stromboli was characterized by ongoing explosions from three vents in Area N (North Crater area) and two vents in Area C-S (South-Central Crater area). During 9-13 May explosions from Area N vents (N1 and N2) averaged 2-4 events per hour; explosions from the N1 vent ejected lapilli and bombs mixed with ash 80-150 m high and those at two N2 vents ejected material less than 80 m high. No explosions occurred at the S1 and C vents in Area C-S; low- to medium-intensity explosions at the two S2 vents occurred at a rate of 0-5 per hour and ejected coarse material 80-150 m high.

A sequence of six major explosions occurred at S1 and S2 in Area C-S during 1643-1647 on 13 May. The first, and most energetic, occurred at 1643 and ejected an abundant amount of coarse material 300 m high. The material fell in areas to the E and SE, and at Pizzo Sopra la Fossa (an area atop the volcano about 100 m above the crater terrace). The second explosion was lower in intensity but also ejected coarse material. The third through the sixth explosion all ejected ash. Deposits from the explosions seen during a field visit the next day were found as far at 450 m elevation, and impacts from ballistics were found along the switchbacks up the Liscione between 700 and 830 m elevation. Decimeter to meter-sized bombs were observed near 850 m elevation. Elongated tephra, centimeter to decimeter in size, was seen near Pizzo Sopra la Fossa. The CS vent area had deepened and the vents were elongated towards the central part. After the sequence of explosions on 13 May, through 15 May, explosive activity at N1, N2, and Area C-S was low.

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)