Rare volcanic steam plumes drift over Lake Militiagun

Satellites detected something incredible in the air over Lake Michigan this week.

Volcanic plumes!

According to the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) University of Wisconsin-Madison, a GOES East satellite captured a narrow ribbon of hazy airborne aerosols late on Wednesday

The particles became visible looking toward the sunset as forward scattering of sunlight increased, according to CIMSS.

Satellites later detected sulfur dioxide clouds traveling over the North Pacific and Canada as well, which they determined was likely from the Feb. 24-25 eruption of Mt. Etna in Italy.

“This is pretty incredible,” staff wrote on Facebook. “Volcanic plumes over Lake Michigan. Now that’s a rare event.”

Considered Europe’s largest and most-active volcano, Mt. Etna on the east coast of Sicily has erupted seven times in the past two weeks.

In Greek mythology, the deadly monster Typhon was trapped under the mountain by Zeus and the forges of Hephaestus were said also to be underneath it.