Strange things are happening in and around active volcanoes again. A mysterious beam was seen over Mount Etna in Sicily after a recent violent eruption while multiple UFOs were recorded on the cameras which are always pointed at the frequently-active UFO hotspot Popocatépetl volcano in Mexico. Is it time to worry?

Mount Etna is the largest active volcano in Italy and the second-largest in the European–North-African region. It has a history of devastating eruptions and over 25% of Sicily’s population lives on its slopes, so any activity is a cause for concern. The latest began on February 27th with what was considered to be a minor eruption. However, the lava flow continued and eventually hit snow, where on March 17th it caused a phreatomagmatic eruption – an explosion caused by hot lava blasting snow into steam and setting off explosions launching rocks and ash. In this case, a BBC news crew and a group of tourists were nearly killed by the blast. As one BBC reporter described it:

Running down a mountain pelted by rocks, dodging burning boulders and boiling steam – not an experience I ever ever want to repeat.

Does someone or something want them to stay away? On March 18th, shortly after midnight, a camera monitoring Etna recorded what looks like a wide light beam directly in the center of the crater. Subsequent photos taken over the next few minutes show the beam appear to move away until it disappears out of the camera’s frame.

Since no official explanation or even recognition of the existence of the beam appears to have been made, its cause is open for speculation. It doesn’t look like a natural occurrence such as lightning or an eruption since its shape is uniform and steady. While it could certainly be an alien ship beaming from above – especially with what looks like such a wide beam – it could also be from a drone or other aircraft. It seems unlikely that the beam is emanating from the ground that close to the still-flowing lava, unless it was from a top-secret lava-proof vehicle. Some viewers claim to see three UFOs just before the beam leaves the frame.

Speaking of UFOs …

The Popocatépetl volcano (the most active volcano in Mexico – coincidence?) in Central Mexico has had a number of unexplained UFOs pop up on the various cameras monitoring it. That trend continued last week. This multi-orbed or multi-lighted UFO, taken on March 19th, seems to be passing over the volcano with its lights or orbs slowly blinking or possibly separating.

This strange UFO was photographed on March 11th. Whatever it is appears to come out of the face of the volcano rather than the crater.

As with many of the photos of UFOs and strange occurrences over volcanoes, no official explanation is given and speculations range from volcanic debris to drones to birds to government projects to aliens to camera glitches. Why are UFOs so common around active volcanoes? The constant monitoring gives us plenty of opportunities to see them but little or no details for identifying them.

Feel free to speculate away on these latest sightings. Is it time to worry?