What type of cone does mount Etna have and what types of lava forms mount Etna. Who lives near mount Etna?
Mt. Etna is a stratovolcano (composite volcano), which is the very classic and cliche shape that every school child draws when instructed to draw a volcano. It has been continuously erupting since May 13, 2008. Unlike most stratovolcanoes, it is primarily basaltic in magma (mafic – low in silica) and lava chemistry and rock formation (most stratovolcanoes are granitic – felsic, high in silica). Again, unlike most stratovolcanoes, Etna is constantly undergoing eruptions, which keeps it from experiencing the common explosive blasts such as occur at other composites like Pinatubo, Mt. St. Helens, and the massive Tambora. The mountain is very geologically complex, and remains a pretty good mystery today. Many people live around the volcano, and most of the time, nothing happens to really bother them.
