About the volcano
Vesuvius is a stratovolcano rising above Naples. In 79 CE its Plinian eruption – named after Pliny the Younger, who described it in his letters – buried Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabiae under ash and pyroclastic flows. It has erupted many times since; the last eruption, in March 1944, destroyed nearby villages and aircraft parked at a military airfield. Hundreds of thousands of people live on its slopes and at its foot, so Vesuvius is constantly watched by the Osservatorio Vesuviano – the oldest volcano observatory in the world.
Eruption history
VEI – Volcanic Explosivity Index: 0 = lava outpouring, 4 = like Eyjafjallajökull 2010, 6 = like Pinatubo 1991, 7 = like Tambora 1815. The scale is logarithmic – each step is about 10 times more material.
| Start | End | VEI | Vent and dating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 July 1913 | 4 April 1944 | 3 | Summit and upper flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 18 December 1875 | 22 April 1906 | 4 | Summit and upper flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 16 December 1870 | 30 April 1872 | 3 | Summit and upper NW and south flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 10 February 1864 | 26 November 1868 | 2 | Summit and upper SE flank · Observations: Reported |
| 19 December 1855 | 31 December 1861 | 3 | Summit and SW flank (300-225 m) · Observations: Reported |
| 14 December 1854 | 27 May 1855 | 3 | Summit and upper N flank · Observations: Reported |
| 20 September 1841 | 16 February 1850 | 2 | Summit, upper N and E flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 16 January 1835 | 3 January 1839 | 3 | Summit, upper east and west flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 2 July 1824 | 2 September 1834 | 3 | Summit, upper E and S flanks · Observations: Reported |
| January 1796 | 16 November 1822 | 3 | Summit and upper flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 18 August 1783 | 5 July 1794 | 3 | Summit and SW flank (550-300 m) · Observations: Reported |
| 15 February 1770 | 4 October 1779 | 3 | Summit, N, NE, SE and E flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 1764 | 27 October 1767 | 3 | Summit, upper SW, SE, and NNW flanks · Observations: Reported |
| November 1744 | 6 January 1761 | 3 | Summit, upper SE, E and lower S flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 1742 | 1743 | 1 | Observations: Reported |
| 25 December 1732 | 4 June 1737 | 3 | Summit and SW flank · Observations: Reported |
| 4 September 1724 | 1 April 1730 | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 14 August 1708 | 8 July 1723 | 3 | Summit, upper east and south flanks · Observations: Reported |
| 1 July 1701 | 22 August 1707 | 3 | Summit and SW flank · Observations: Reported |
| 15 September 1697 | July 1698 | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 31 July 1696 | 14 August 1696 | 2 | Observations: Reported |
| 3 October 1685 | 29 April 1694 | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 12 August 1682 | 22 August 1682 | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 25 February 1654 | 28 March 1680 | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 1 July 1637 | December 1652 | 2 | Observations: Reported |
| 16 December 1631 | 31 January 1632 | 5 | Summit, SW and S flanks · Observations: Reported |
| c. 1570 | 1572 | 1 | Observations: Reported |
| 1500 | — | 2 | Observations: Reported |
| 1150 | — | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 1 June 1139 | 9 June 1139 | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 27 January 1037 | — | 3 | Summit and south flank (I Monticelli?) · Observations: Reported |
| 31 December 1006 | — | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 999 | — | 3 | Summit and south flank (Fossamonaca) · Observations: Reported |
| 991 | — | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 1 December 968 | — | 4 | Observations: Reported |
| 900 ± 40 years | — | 0 | South and west (Tironi) flanks · Correlation: Magnetism |
| 860 ± 50 years | — | 0 | South flank · Correlation: Magnetism |
| 15 October 787 | 15 January 788 | 3 | Summit and south flank · Observations: Reported |
| February 685 | March 685 | 4 | Observations: Reported |
| 536 | — | ? | Observations: Reported |
| 8 July 512 | — | 4 | Observations: Reported |
| 5 November 472 | 6 November 472 | 5 | Observations: Reported |
| 379 | 395 | 2 | Observations: Reported |
| 222 | 235 | 2 | Observations: Reported |
| 203 | — | 4 | Observations: Reported |
| 172 | — | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| 24 October 79 | 28 October 79 | 5 | Observations: Reported |
| 217 BCE | 216 BCE | 3 | Observations: Reported |
| c. 600 BCE | — | 3 | Correlation: Anthropology |
| 880 BCE ± 50 years | — | 4 | Isotopic: 14C (calibrated) |
| 1,430 BCE ± 300 years | — | 4 | Isotopic: 14C (calibrated) |
| 1,550 BCE ± 75 years | — | 4 | Isotopic: 14C (calibrated) |
| 2,420 BCE ± 40 years | — | 5 | Isotopic: 14C (calibrated) |
| 6,940 BCE ± 100 years | — | 5 | Isotopic: 14C (calibrated) |
Data: Global Volcanism Program, Smithsonian Institution (#211020) · Wikipedia (pl) · Wikipedia (en)