UPDATE 27 Sep 2021

On June 15, 2021, this cave was visited inside, which had already been visited on several previous occasions (2016-2017-2018). However, previously it had not been possible to detect the presence of a lower level of the cavity due to the heavy presence of snow during the periods of the visit, which obstructed the entrance to a lower room which is accessed from a small ravine that is created between the snow and the ceiling of the lower level of the cave. The morphology of the hypogeum suggested the possibility of an extension of the development. However, the exploration was not completed as some areas of the flow channel in which it is located were still inaccessible due to the snow. A further exploration attempt will take place shortly. We reserve the right to provide the position of the cave after having carried out a visit and more accurate surveys in the short term.

We would like to point out, after this first exploration, the fascinating morphology of the underground environment and the ice of the visited part. The fracture cavity, in the most accessible part, is made up of 3 levels. In the first, larger one, there is already a significant presence of snow brought inside by the storms. A second lower level, as mentioned, is accessible from a narrow passage and continues on a steep slope that is always snowy and at the bottom you touch an ice floor (shiny glass). From here we proceeded with crampons for safety reasons, but after the visit, we thought that in conditions similar to those found, they could perhaps be avoided so as not to affect the beauty of the ice waterfall that covers the jump of about 2 meters, using a rope or a ladder and the supports that the rock offers on the sides of the waterfall. Having descended to the 3rd level, the lowest, the view is breathtaking. Inside, in fact, as you can see from the photos, there is a really significant amount of ice, which in some places exceeds 3 meters in thickness, constituting the "roof" of this environment. The bottom is also covered in ice.

The cavity is both at a more southern latitude and also at a lower altitude of 20 meters compared to the more famous Grotta del Gelo. These coordinates make it the most southern "glacier" in Europe (at least until another is discovered). The provisional name "Grotta Polo Nord" was initially given and following various suggestions received, including the variant Polo Sud, we are leaning towards not falling into parochialism, already very present in the localities and slopes of Etna, and maintaining neutrality on the name and calling it simply Grotta Polare. The reference to the Earth's poles seems rather appropriate given the conditions detected and the freezing temperature inside.

Dario & Paolo Teri June 15, 2021