Etna, a volcano in Italy, is spewing out rings of water vapor and gases. The phenomenon is rare, but it has also been observed in other volcanoes.
The Etna volcano in Italy has been blowing up tires in recent days. It’s not smoke, but a mixture of water vapor and gases that rises from the volcano’s mouth.
The phenomenon has been reported by, among others, the British broadcasting company BBC and Reuters news agency.
Although volcanic rings are a fairly rare phenomenon, they have been seen bubbling from Mount Etna on the island of Sicily before. Rings have also been observed rising from other volcanoes. Among other things, the Icelandic Eyjafjallajökull blows them from time to time.
Volcanologist Simona Scollo explained for the New York Times last year that the vent of the volcano must be round enough to allow the steam to form into rings.
When the steam and gases inside the volcano escape in a sufficiently fast burst, they form rings. Etna is an ideal volcano for tires as it is prone to forming large gas bubbles that become tires.
Etna is one of the highest and most active volcanoes in Europe. There have been several eruptions there in the 2000s.