What happens if mount vesuvius erupts

Nevertheless, , people live in the 18 towns at its base that comprise the "red zone. Directly in the line of fire, the 9-mile kilometer radius of people stand little chance of survival when Vesuvius explodes again. Experts warn that emergency plans should also include nearby Naples since an explosion could send dangerous burning ash and pumice as far as 12 miles 20 kilometers [source: Fraser ]. The last time Vesuvius activated was in , causing minor damage and killing 26 people.

New research has shown that the mountain probably will not act as kindly next time. For starters, Mount Vesuvius sits on top of a layer of magma deep in the earth that measures square miles square kilometers [source: Noble ]. That's a lot of magma -- Kilaeua Volcano is probably the most active volcano in the world, with 34 eruptions since [source : U. Geological Survey ], but compared to Vesuvius, which has erupted around 30 times since 79 A. Topping it off, scientists expect that the next eruption will be an incredibly forceful explosion, termed plinean , marked by flying rock and ash at speeds of up to almost miles per hour kph.

To summarize, if Mount Vesuvius erupts today, it wouldn't be a pretty picture. Given its potential, Vesuvius could endanger more than 3 million people and wipe out the city of Naples [source: Than ]. Next, we'll learn what happened to Pompeii and Herculaneum that gave Vesuvius its notable reputation. Nineteen hours later, the two wealthy Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum were almost erased from history.

Signs of the incoming blast included a minor earthquake and underground water sources running out a few days prior [source: Stewart ]. A plume of smoke rocketed 20 miles 32 kilometers into the air from Vesuvius' opening, spewing forth its blisteringly hot contents. The only eyewitness to account the eruption, Pliny the Younger, compared the smoke shooting up from Mount Vesuvius to a pine tree. Soon, the city was engulfed in smoke and noxious gasses from the mountain. Although most people escaped Pompeii, at least 2, who stayed behind were crushed or buried alive in the ash and rock that rained from the sky that day.

On the other side of the mountain at the Bay of Naples, the seismic storm travelled to Herculaneum. In addition to clouds of ash and rock came a heat wave of almost degrees Fahrenheit degrees Celsius [source: Lorenzi ]. Many were able to escape the wrath of the volcano , but 80 bodies were found -- seemingly frozen in time -- killed instantly by extreme thermal shock.

Since the area surrounding Mount Vesuvius was uninhabitable for centuries following the explosion, the cities eventually drifted from history, until Why it's so hard to treat pain in infants. This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city. Animals Wild Cities This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city Caracals have learned to hunt around the urban edges of Cape Town, though the predator faces many threats, such as getting hit by cars.

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Travel My Hometown In L. Subscriber Exclusive Content. Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars? How viruses shape our world. In , the Italian government resumed the excavation of Herculaneum, retrieving numerous art treasures, including bronze and marble statues and paintings. The remains of 2, men, women, and children were found at Pompeii. After perishing from asphyxiation, their bodies were covered with ash that hardened and preserved the outline of their bodies. Later, their bodies decomposed to skeletal remains, leaving a kind of plaster mold behind.

Archaeologists who found these molds filled the hollows with plaster, revealing in grim detail the death pose of the victims of Vesuvius. The rest of the city is likewise frozen in time, and ordinary objects that tell the story of everyday life in Pompeii are as valuable to archaeologists as the great unearthed statues and frescoes.

It was not until that the first human remains were found at Herculaneum, and these hundreds of skeletons bear ghastly burn marks that testifies to horrifying deaths. Today, Mount Vesuvius is the only active volcano on the European mainland. Its last eruption was in and its last major eruption was in But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! On August 24, , the man who killed 77 people in a July 22, , bombing and shooting attack in Norway is sentenced to 21 years in prison, the maximum allowed under Norwegian law.

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