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Mount Etna erupts over Italy

Watch: Drone footage shows explosive Mount Etna eruption

One of the world's most active volcanoes, Mount Etna in Italy, has been erupting over the last few days.

Located in Sicily, its volcanic activity has been increasing and people have captured stunning images of lava spewing out of its largest crater.

It's called the Voragine Crater, and it's the first time it's been active in four years.

Lava flowed from there into the Bocca Nuova crater, which means 'new mouth'.

It's quite a popular tourist destination, and tourists have been spotted snapping selfies with the erupting volcano.

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Giuseppe di Stefano/Reuters

The eruption is creating rivers of lava down Mount Etna's side

Mount Etna Fact File

  • It's Europe's tallest active volcano, at 3300 metres high

  • It's one of three active volcanoes in Italy

  • It's over double the size of Vesuvius, the volcano that buried the ancient city of Pompeii almost 2000 years ago

What is a volcano?

The Big Question: Why do volcanoes actually erupt?

A volcano is a rupture on the Earth's crust, which allows lava, ash, and gases to escape when magma rises to the surface.

Magma is the red-hot liquid rock that usually lives below the Earth's core.

Volcanoes are evidence of the pressure and powerful forces at work inside the Earth.

Indonesia is home to more volcanoes than any other country in the world. In contrast, the UK doesn't have any active volcanoes.

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