During the night of 29-30 April, Etna showed interesting volcanic activity. Buoyed by north winds, the column of gases and genera moved in front of the lava front partially obscuring the lava fountains. This made it possible to highlight the eruptive dynamics around the mouth of the south-east crater. Several paroxysmal explosions ejected dense clouds of incandescent dust and ash into the air. These in turn were trapped by the turbulent winds at the base of the crater, giving rise to a fiery ash devil that developed like a whirlwind and reached a height of about 200-300 metres.
During the night of 12-13 May, Etna again showed significant eruptive activity, concentrated at the active mouths of the south-east crater. During the paroxysmal phase, several lava fountains followed one another, accompanied by a copious emission of volcanic gases. The attached image documents a peculiar phenomenon: the formation and evolution of a gaseous ring structure. This structure appears as a gas ring, but it should be noted that it is not comparable to the well-defined gas rings observed about a year earlier in a similar event. In that earlier episode, the stabilisation of the rings was favoured by ideal atmospheric conditions, characterised by low turbulence and greater persistence of the gaseous flow. This allowed the formation of well-structured rings that were visible for a prolonged period. In the present case, however, the observed structure can be described as a proto-ring: it is a gaseous emission that initially assumed the shape of the crater mouth, generating an annular configuration. However, high atmospheric turbulence and the instability of the eruptive flow prevented the stabilisation and consolidation of the shape. The result is therefore an incomplete and transient ring, unable to develop into a stable and lasting gaseous structure.