First evidence of volcanic plume observed in a central Mediterranean marine observatory

Continuous measurements of PM₁₀ and PM_2.5, aerosol size distribution (for Dp ranging from 280 nm to 10 μm) and meteorological parameters are continuously performed since 1st August 2013 at the CNR-ISAC Climatic Observatory of Lamezia Terme (40°3N, 18°1E, 50 m a.s.l.), in the framework of the PON/ERDF I-AMICA Project. In this work, we present and discuss a special event which occurred on 19th November 2013, when a significant increase of PM₁₀ (up to 75 μg m^-3) was observed. During the night between 16th and 17th November, an explosive eruption occurred at Mt. Etna. The analysis of HYSPLIT, i.e. three-dimensional back-trajectories, ending in Lamezia together with MOLOCH (MOdelloLOCale in H coordinates) meteorological simulations suggested that the volcanic plume from Mt. Etna affected Lamezia Terme on 19th November. Moreover, for this case study, SEM-EDX analyses on PM10 filters revealed the presence of large abundances of sulphur minerals, further corroborating the possibility that the large PM10 value observed at the measurement sites could be tagged to the advection of volcanic ash.