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Mount Etna Eruption Looks Like Sauron's Awakening At Mount Doom

He's coming to steal the "Star Wars" spotlight!
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The villain from "The Lord of the Rings" wasn't about to sit back and let "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" hog all the attention.

Sauron might as well have awakened in this spectacular eruption at Italy's Mount Etna on Thursday.

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The eruption produced some heartstopping photos that show lava exploding with dark clouds and lightning. The scene looked like it was lifted out of J.R.R. Tolkien's books.

These images were captured as the Sicilian volcano's Voragine crater had its first eruption in two years, The Guardian reported.

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Lava sprang as high as one kilometre over the volcano, while a cloud of ash reached as high as three kilometres into the air, Wired said.

The eruption lasted just under an hour, but it was more than enough time to capture pictures that made it look like Mount Doom.

Here's a shot of the mountain from "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King":

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