Dust Devil Occurs on Volcano: Formation of Small Sand and Dust Vortex Explained

Last Updated: August 28, 2023

In the village of Gelso, on the island of Vulcano, some strange phenomena have been observed recently. Two large fires occurred a few weeks ago, which caught the attention of locals and tourists who stopped in the bay with their boats. The phenomenon, captured on camera by engineer Fausto Mandarano, appears to be a dust devil, a small tornado-like vortex caused by overheating of the dry and hot ground. Typically, dust devils are seen in the Sahara or the United States, making their occurrence in Italy rare. Meteorologist Giorgio Sarro explains that the phenomenon occurs when the ground is hotter than the air and there is rotation in the background, creating a vortex with the help of wind and obstacles like mountains. Dust devils are not as destructive as tornadoes and typically reach heights of 300-500 meters.