Most Significant Eruptions at Mt. Vesuvius


from: Scarth&Tanguy
"Volcanoes of Europe"
Mt. Vesuvius is located at the southern end of a volcanically active area (Phlegraean Fields) that is located along a subduction zone where the Adriatic Micro-Plate sinks beneath the Tyrrhenian Sea (Western Mediterranean Sea). Mt. Vesuvius sits on old sedimentary rocks (Triassic dolomites, Jurassic limestones, Tertiary sandstones) and younger volcanic rocks (grey Campanian Tuffs).

Mt. Vesuvius probably has the longest historical records of volcanic eruptions in the world. An eruption in 79 A.D. was recorded by Pliny the Younger in two letters to the Roman historian Tacitus. His uncle Pliny the Elder perished in an attempt to rescue friends ( click here to access an English translation.)
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