Lava Flow Simulation with Cellular Automata: Applications for Civil Defense and Land Use Planning

The determination of areas exposed to new eruptive events in volcanic regions is crucial for diminishing consequences in terms of human causalities and damages of material properties. In this paper, we illustrate a methodology for defining flexible high-detailed lava invasion hazard maps which is based on an robust and efficient Cellular Automata model for simulating lava flows. We also present some applications for land use planning and civil defense to some inhabited areas of Mt Etna (South Italy), Europe’s most active volcano, showing the methodology’s appropriateness.