The Vesuvius Volcano
The Vesuvius volcano is the only active volcano on the mainland of
Europe. It is located about 15 kilometers off the coast of the Bay of
Naples. It is located in the southern part of Italy. The volcano's
crater is about 600 meters in diameter and 300 meters deep. Mount
Vesuvius was born approximately ten thousand year ago. For hundreds of
years, people thought that this volcano was dead. The people built
houses and towns nearby. There was a few major eruptions, but the most
important one was the Pompeii eruption. On August 24, A.D, 79 this volcano
which evrybody thought was dead, surprisingly exploded. The top of the
mountain was blown off by an violent explosion. Pompeii, a city of 20,000
inhabitants lay buried beneath 15 to 25 feet of mud, ash, cinders and
lapilli (gravel sized pieces of pumice. Igneous rock destroyed and buried
the Roman cities.The cities of Italy such as Herculaneum, Pompeii, and
Stabiae were overwhelmed by a rain of ashesand mud. No lava was ejected
in this eruption, and no lava was ejectedfrom this time of the eruption,
all the way to 1066. The bottom of the Vesuvius, beatiful vineyards were
there before this eruption. Eventually, they were all destroyed, but as
time passed, trees and vineyards once again began to grow on the sides
of the old volcano. The ash that layed there for all these years, was
there for a good reason. The Vesuvius has been fertilized by ash and mud
from regular eruptions over the last 20 centuries. The ash supports the
local wine industry. In the Pompeii eruption, over 16,000 Pompeiians were
killed. Surprissingly some of their bodies were preserved as well as their
belongings. Pots, pans, the helmets of gladiators, paintings, and jewels
were some of the discoveries the archeologists recovered at Pompeii. The
bodies were also preserved after all these years. Following this eruption,
the Vesuvius was thought to be extinct. Since, thirty more eruptions were
recorded. The volcano's activity is now carefully monitered. The Vesuvius
is now becoming a great tourist attraction. A funicular railroad has been
constructed from the base of the cinder cone, to the summit of the crater.
Email: volcanojohn@hotmail.com
