Mount Etna Mount Etna Mount Etna, or Etna ( or ; or ; ), is an active stratovolcano on the east coast of Sicily, Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Catania, between the cities of Messina and Catania. It lies above the convergent plate margin between the African Plate and the Eurasian Plate. It is the highest active volcano in Europe outside the Caucasus. It is currently high, though this varies with summit eruptions. It is the highest peak in Italy south of the Alps. Etna covers an area of with a basal circumference of . This makes it by far the
Mount Etna accessible record of Etna's eruptive history. The most recent collapse event at the summit of Etna is thought to have occurred about 2,000 years ago, forming what is known as the Piano Caldera. This caldera has been almost entirely filled by subsequent lava eruptions, but is still visible as a distinct break in the slope of the mountain near the base of the present-day summit cone. Mount Etna is moving towards the Mediterranean Sea at an average rate of 14 mm per year, the massif sliding on an unconsolidated layer above the older sloping terrain. Eruptions of Etna follow a