Vulcano

Vulcano is the etymological source of the word 'volcano' in virtually every European language, derived from the Roman god Vulcan.

The 'Vulcanian' eruption type — a volcanological classification used worldwide — is named after the 1888–1890 eruption of this volcano.

The ancient Romans believed Vulcano was the chimney of Vulcan's forge, where the god crafted weapons for the other deities.

In September 2021, a significant increase in gas emissions and seismicity prompted Italian authorities to raise Vulcano's alert level for the first time in decades.

Vulcano's volcanic complex spans six construction stages over 136,000 years, with two major caldera collapses shaping the island.

Vulcanello, now a peninsula at the island's northern tip, was a separate island created by a submarine eruption around 183 BCE and connected to the main island by ~1550 CE.

The 183 BCE VEI 4 eruption — the creation of Vulcanello — was documented by Roman historians and is the largest known Holocene event.

Summit fumarole temperatures at La Fossa crater exceed 300°C, and the distinctive sulfur-yellow deposits are visible from approaching ferries.

The volcanic mud baths (Fanghi) at Porto di Levante attract thousands of tourists annually who immerse themselves in geothermally heated sulfurous mud.

The Stevenson family (including the father of Robert Louis Stevenson) invested in Vulcano's sulfur mines in the mid-19th century.

Breadcrust bombs from the 1888–1890 eruption — volcanic projectiles with cracked, crusty exteriors — are still abundant on the slopes of La Fossa.

The Aeolian Islands, including Vulcano, were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 for their outstanding examples of volcanic processes.