Etna Lava Tubes Project was born with the aim of spreading knowledge of little-known or unpublished Etna caves. Natural phenomena among the most fascinating of our volcano. Many texts report that on Etna there are at least 260 known caves. In reality the formation of lava tubes is very common and the number of caves is destined to increase considerably. Below we report a census of little-known caves - for which information is not available elsewhere - or unpublished discovered by our team in particular by the founders of EtnaExcursion.it Dario & Paolo Teri. During an exploratory campaign that began "for fun" in 2018 and still (April 2023), about 70 have been found, not considered in the general count indicated above. Here we report only those considered most interesting from a naturalistic point of view. For the caves already surveyed we recommend a visit to EtnaNatura.it and Mungibeddu.it
Exploration: Easily accessible and visitable with just lights and helmet.
Taken over by Dario & Paolo Teri (on 13.1.2021)
Notified to the relevant municipality on \\
The cave, very particular for its morphology, is located about 400 linear meters from the famous Dagala dell'Orso on lavas of 1614/24 of type aa. Identifying the entrance to the cave is not easy, as there are 3 openings, not very large. The most downstream part of the cavity consists of a channel with a rather low vault. After about 15 meters a collapse opens on the vault that allows access to the second part of the cave. Here the channel forks into two channels both passable by crouching. There are several concretions of abundant white minerals. After about 20 meters you can glimpse the light that enters from the third opening, which in the morning, creates very fascinating plays of light on the bright green moss grown in this area of the rocky floor. Here the most interesting part of the hypogeum opens. A very large and tapered room. On the left side you descend towards another large “room” about 2,5 meters high on average, where the partial collapse of the vault has exposed the most compact layers of the roof, which from the outside appears to be a typical “tumulus”, a phenomenon of lifting of slab-shaped lava due to the thrust of the lava from the bottom upwards, very common in the long eruption of 1624. At the time of the survey there were no typical men or other signs of human passage, leading to the hypothesis that it could be an unexplored cave or more probably very little known, perhaps by the shepherds of the area. The proximity to the CAI path passing by Dagala dell'Orso would justify a visit to the cave.
Dario Teri 13 January 2021 Unseen & Little-Known Etna Caves No Responses
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How are volcanic caves formed?
Lava tubes are very common on Etna. They form during an eruption ...
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16th August 2023 – On August 14th there was a paroxysm (a “lightning” eruption) from the summit craters which has already ended. Everything falls within the normal Etna phenomena. There is no danger for the population and visitors. The excursions are taking place regularly. GO TO NEWS