Italy's Mount Etna lights up night sky in powerful eruption

Emilio Messina, 39, hiked to a panoramic point near Trecastagni in Sicily last Thursday (10/2) to grab the shots.

Emilio, from Catania, said: "I've wanted to take this shot for a long time. Events like this on Etna are very rare.

"The eruptive event itself was already one of the most powerful recorded in recent years here on Etna and witnessing lightning coming out of the volcano was a bit scary.

"To avoid being under the fallout material I always check the direction of the wind, and I never get too close."

The content was taken on February 10 at 10:30pm.