One of the most famous and prominent features in the Province of Naples is Mt. Vesuvius, a composite volcano which sits inside the caldera of the older volcano Mt. Somma. This complex is located over a slab window in the African plate, which is being subducted underneath the Eurasian Plate. Vesuvius last erupted in 1944, beginning with lava flows from the crater and expanding to lava fountains. It culminated in a Plinian eruption, exploding pyroclasts of tephra and ash, as seen in the photo below.
picture sourced from http://www.wingsoverkansas.com/, taken from a World War II airman.
The map below shows the boundary of the African plate (right of the western shoreline of Italy) and the Eurasian plate, and the location of Mt. Vesuvius and other volcanoes in Italy.
Map sourced from www.geology.com/volcanoes/vesuvius
The diagram below shows the section A-B from the map above, the subduction of the African plate under the Eurasian plate, and the magma rising through a volcanic conduit.
Diagram sourced from www.geology.com/volcanoes/vesuvius
The Vesuvius cone, similar to what is seen today, is thought to have been created from the eruption of Mt. Somma in 79 A.D., resulting in the burying of the ancient city Pompeii. The prominent crater in the foreground of the photo below is Mt. Vesuvius as it appears today, the ridge near the top of the photo is what remains of the rim of the Mt. Somma caldera.
Picture sourced from http://www.lifeinitaly.com/
Currently, the 4 million people who live in the Naples area are vulnerable to future eruptions. The 79 A.D. eruption was the first recorded eruption in history by Pliny the Younger, hence the term Plinian eruption, from his description of watching the events from across the Gulf of Naples. Those nearer captured the experience by the voids their bodies left in the ash and pumice that fell. In the 1700 and 1800's, these voids were filled with plaster and are now on display. The photos below display images from Pompeii.
Photo sourced from http://www.rometopompeii.wordpress.com/.
A dog, with collar still on, being overtaken by the Nuee Ardente in Pompeii, 79 A.D.
Photo by Claus Ableiter, http://www.hilobrow.com/
This photo is taken from the ruins inside the Temple of Apollo in Pompeii, looking toward Mt. Vesuvius
I took this photo in 2009.
Works Cited:
Ball, Jessica. Mt. Vesuvius - Italy. http://geology.com/volcanoes/vesuvius/. Site accessed 2/12/2011
Ball, Jessica. Mt. Vesuvius - Italy. http://geology.com/volcanoes/vesuvius/. Site accessed 2/12/2011
Vesuvio National Park. http://www.lifeinitaly.com/tourism/campania/vesuvius-park. Posted 01/18/2010. Site accessed 2/12/2011.
