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| {{Mtnbox start norange|Name=Mount Vesuvius|Photo=Vesuvius_from_Pompeii.jpg|Caption=<small>Mount Vesuvius as seen from ], which was destroyed in the eruption of AD ].</small>| | |||
| elevation=1281| | |||
| Elevation=1,281 m (4,202 ft) as of ]|Location=]}} | |||
| {{Mtnbox coor dm|40|49|N|14|26|E|type:mountain_region:IT}} | |||
| {{Mtnbox volcano|Type=]|Age=17000 yr|Last eruption=]}} | |||
| {{Mtnbox climb|First ascent= |Easiest route=]}} | |||
| {{Mtnbox finish}} | |||
| :''This article is about the ] in ]. For other uses, see ].'' | |||
| '''Mount Vesuvius''' (]: ''Monte Vesuvio'') is a ] east of ], ], located at {{coor dm|40|49|N|14|26|E|}}. It is the only active volcano on the ]an mainland, although it is not currently erupting. There are two other ], although not located on the Italian mainland. Vesuvius is situated on the coast of the ], about nine kilometres (six miles) to the east of the city and a short distance inland from the shore. It forms a conspicuous feature in the beautiful landscape presented by that bay, when viewed from the sea, with the city in the foreground. The mountain is notorious for its destruction of the ] city of ] in AD ]. It also destroyed the town of ] in the same year; it has erupted many times since and is today regarded as one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world. | |||
| ==Origin of the name== | |||
| Mount Vesuvius was regarded by the Greeks and Romans as being sacred to the hero and demigod ]/], and the town of ], built at its base, was named after him. The mountain is also named after Hercules in a less direct manner: he was the son of the god ] and ] of ]. Zeus was also known as ''Ves'' ({{polytonic|Ὓης}}) in his aspect as the god of rains and dews. Hercules was thus alternatively known as ''Vesouvios'' ({{polytonic|Ὓσου υἱός}}), "Son of Ves." This name was corrupted into "Vesuvius." | |||
| According to other sources, Vesuvius came from the Oscan word ''fesf'' which means "smoke." | |||
| There is a theory that the name "Vesuvius" is derived from the ] ] ''ves-'' = "]". | |||
| ==Physical aspects== | |||
| ] in the background]] | |||
| Vesuvius is a distinctive "humpbacked" mountain, consisting of a large cone partially encircled by a large secondary summit, Monte Somma (actually the remains of a huge ancient cone destroyed in a catastrophic eruption, probably the famous one of AD 79). The height of the main cone is constantly modified by eruptions but presently stands at 1,281m (4,202ft). Monte Somma is 1,149m (3,770ft) high, separated from the main cone by the valley of Atrio di Cavallo, which is some 3 miles (5 km) long. The slopes of the mountain are scarred by lava flows but are heavily vegetated, with scrub at higher altitudes and ]s lower down. It is still regarded as an active volcano although its activity currently is limited to little more than steam from vents at the bottom of the crater. The area around the mountain is densely populated, with more than two million people living in the region and on the volcano's slopes. The eruption of vesuvius raised the ground by 1.7 ct.Vesuvius is a ] at the ] where the ] is being ] beneath the ]. Its ] is composed of viscous ]. Layers of lava, ]e, ashes, and ] make up the mountain. | |||
| ==Eruptions== | |||
| Vesuvius has erupted repeatedly in recorded history, most famously in ] and subsequently in ], ], in ], six times in the ], eight times in the ] (notably in ]), and in ], ], and ]. There has been no eruption since then. The eruptions vary greatly in severity but are characterised by explosive outbursts of the kind dubbed ] after the Roman writer who observed the AD 79 eruption. On occasion, the eruptions have been so large that the whole of southern Europe has been blanketed by ashes; in 472 and 1631, Vesuvian ashes fell on ] (now known as ]), over 1,000 miles away. The volcano has been quiescent since 1944. | |||
| ===Before AD 79=== | |||
| ]''.]] | |||
| Well before the famous eruption of ] which destroyed the Roman towns of ], ], and ], Vesuvius had erupted violently and destroyed ] and ] settlements as far back as ]. The remains of a settlement at ] was discovered recently by Italian ]s, with huts, pots, pans, livestock and the remains of people buried under ] and ash in much the same way that Pompeii was later destroyed. | |||
| Vesuvius may have erupted in ]. There were earthquakes in Italy during that year and the sun was reported as being dimmed by a haze or dry fog. ] wrote of the sky being on fire near Naples and ] mentioned in his epic poem ] that Vesuvius had thundered and produced flames worthy of ] in that year, although both authors were writing around 250 years later. ] ] samples of around that period show relatively high acidity, which is assumed to have been caused by atmospheric ]{{ref|VolHumFoot}}. | |||
| The mountain subsequently went through several centuries of quiescence and was described by ] writers as having been covered with ]s and ]s, except at the top which was craggy. Within a large circle of nearly perpendicular cliffs was a flat space large enough for the encampment of the army of the rebel gladiator ] in ]. This area was doubtless an ancient ], left from the last major eruption of Vesuvius. At the time, the mountain appears to have had only one summit (of which the present Monte Somma is a fragment), judging by a painting found in a Pompeiian house. | |||
| By the time the Greeks and Romans settled the area, the nature of the mountain had entirely been forgotten. The area was, then as now, densely populated with villages, towns and small cities like Pompeii, and its slopes were covered in vineyards and farms. | |||
| ===Eruption of 79=== | |||
| The devastating eruption of ] was preceded by powerful earthquakes in ], which caused widespread destruction around the Bay of Naples. Earth tremors were commonplace in the region. The Romans, however, were entirely ignorant of the link between earthquakes and vulcanism, and grew used to them; the writer ] wrote that they "were not particularly alarming because they are frequent in Campania." | |||
| This complacency proved fatal for many on ], ], when the mountain erupted spectacularly. It was recorded for posterity by ], who observed the eruption and recorded it in a famous letter to the historian ]. He saw an extraordinarily dense and rapidly-rising cloud appearing above the mountain: | |||
| ] | |||
| :I cannot give you a more exact description of its figure, than by resembling it to that of a pine tree; for it shot up to a great height in the form of a tall trunk, which spread out at the top into a sort of branches. It appeared sometimes bright, and sometimes dark and spotted, as it was either more or less impregnated with earth and cinders. | |||
| What he had seen was a column of ash, now estimated to have been more than 20 miles (32 km) tall. | |||
| His uncle ] was that day in command of the ] at ], on the far side of the bay, and decided to see for himself what was going on. Taking a ship across the bay, the elder Pliny encountered thick showers of hot cinders, lumps of pumice and pieces of rock, blocking his approach to the port of Retina. He went instead to Stabiae where he landed and took shelter with Pomponianus, a friend, in the town's bath house.<br> | |||
| Pliny and his party saw flames coming from several parts of the mountain (probably a sign of superheated ]s, which would later destroy Pompeii and Herculaneum). After resting for a short time in the bath house, the party had to evacuate it due to the torrential rain of ] (ash, cinders, and/or rock) filling the courtyard leading to the building. Violent earthquakes shook the town, adding to the danger. Pliny, Pomponianus and their companions made their way back towards the beach with pillows tied on their heads to protect them from the rockfall. By this time, there was so much ash in the air that the party could barely see through the murk and needed torches and lanterns to find their way. They made it to the beach but found the water too violently disturbed from the continuous earthquakes for them to escape safely by sea. Probably as a result of breathing poisonous gases being vented from the volcano, Pliny the Elder collapsed and died. His body was found two days later with no visible physical injuries. | |||
| The eruption is thought to have lasted about 19 hours, in which time the volcano released about 1 cubic mile (4 cubic kilometres) of ash and rock over a wide area to the south and south-east of the crater. Pompeii, Herculaneum and many other towns around Vesuvius were destroyed, with about 3m (10ft) of tephra falling on Pompeii. Around 2,000 people are believed to have died in the town, the vast majority as the result of suffocation by volcanic ashes and gases. Herculaneum, which was much closer to the crater, was buried under 23m (75ft) of ash deposited by a series of pyroclastic flows and mudflows. After the devastating eruption, scientists found that the ground level had rose 1.7 centimeters. Pompeii and Herculaneum were never rebuilt, although surviving townspeople and probably looters did undertake extensive salvage work after the destructions. The towns' locations were eventually forgotten until their accidental rediscovery in the ]. Vesuvius itself underwent major changes - its slopes were denuded of vegetation and its summit had changed considerably due to the force of the eruption. | |||
| ===Later eruptions=== | |||
| ] (ca. 1774-6)]] | |||
| Since the eruption of ], Vesuvius has erupted around three dozen times. It erupted again in ], during the lifetime of the historian ]. In ], it ejected such a volume of ash that ashfalls were reported as far away as ]. The eruptions of ] were so severe that those inhabiting the slopes of Vesuvius were granted exemption from taxes by ], the ]ic king of Italy. Further eruptions were recorded in ], ], ], ], ] and ] with the first recorded ] flows. The volcano became quiescent at the end of the ] and in the following years it again became covered with gardens and vineyards as of old. Even the inside of the crater was filled with shrubbery. | |||
| Vesuvius entered a new and particularly destructive phase in December ], when a major eruption buried many villages under lava flows, killing around 3,000 people. Torrents of boiling water were also ejected, adding to the devastation. Activity thereafter became almost continuous, with severe eruptions occurring in ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]. The eruption of 1906 was particularly destructive, killing over 100 people and ejecting the most lava ever recorded from a Vesuvian eruption. Its last eruption came in March ], destroying the villages of ], Massa di Somma and part of San Giorgio a Cremano as ] continued to rage in Italy. | |||
| The volcano has been quiescent ever since. Over the past few centuries, the quiet stages have varied from 18 months to 7½ years, making the current lull in activity the longest in nearly 500 years. While Vesuvius is not thought likely to erupt in the immediate future, the danger posed by future eruptions is seen as very high in the light of the volcano's tendency towards sudden extremely violent explosions and the very dense human population on and around the mountain. | |||
| ==Vesuvius Today== | |||
| The area around Vesuvius was declared a ] in 1991. The summit of Vesuvius is open to visitors and there is a small network of paths around the mountain that are maintained by the park authorities on weekends. | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| * by ]. | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| *Live Mount Vesusvius ]s: , | |||
| *. | |||
| ==References== | |||
| * {{note|VolHumFoot}}{{Book reference | Title=Volcanoes in Human History | Publisher=Princeton University Press | Year=2002 | Author=de Boer, Jelle Zeilinga & Sanders, Donald Theodore| ID=ISBN 0-691-05081-3}} | |||
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