On June 6-8, 1912, the Novarupta volcano erupted, USA - one of the largest eruptions of the 20th century. Kodiak Island, located nearby, was covered in a 30-centimeter layer of ash, and because of acid rain caused by emissions of volcanic rocks into the atmosphere, people's clothes fell into threads.
On this day, we decided to remember 5 more of the most destructive volcanic eruptions in history.
Novarupta Volcano, USA 1. The largest eruption in the last 4000 years is the eruption of Mount Tambora, which is located in Indonesia on the island of Sumbawa. The explosion of this volcano occurred on April 5, 1815, although the first signs began to show back in 1812, when the first streams of smoke appeared above it. The eruption continued for 10 days. 180 cubic meters were released into the atmosphere. km. pyroclastics and gases, tons of sand and volcanic dust covered the area within a radius of one hundred kilometers. After the volcanic eruption, due to the huge amount of pollution, it was night for three days within a radius of 500 km. From him. According to eyewitnesses, nothing was visible beyond his own hand. The death toll was more than 70,000 people. The entire population of the island of Sumbawa was destroyed, and residents of nearby islands were also affected. The next year after the eruption was very difficult for the inhabitants of this area, it was called “the year without summer.” Unusually low temperatures caused crop failure and famine. Due to such a large eruption, the climate of the entire planet was changed; in many countries, snow lasted most of the summer that year.
Volcano Tambora, Indonesia 2. A powerful volcanic eruption occurred in 1883 on the island of Krakatoa, between Java and Sumatra, on which the volcano of the same name is located. The height of the smoke column during the eruption was 11 kilometers. After this, the volcano calmed down, but not for long. The culmination phase of the eruption began in August. Dust, gas, and debris rose to a height of 70 km and fell on an area of more than 1 million square meters. km. The roar of the explosion exceeded 180 decibels, which is significantly higher than the human pain threshold. An air wave arose that circled the planet several times, tearing roofs off houses. But this is not all the consequences of the Krakatoa eruption. The tsunami caused by the eruption destroyed 300 cities and towns, killed more than 30,000 people, and left many more homeless. Six months later, the volcano finally calmed down.
Volcano Krakatoa 3. In May 1902, one of the the most terrible disasters twentieth century. Residents of the city of Saint-Pierre, located in Martinique, considered the Mont Pelee volcano weak. No one paid attention to the tremors and rumble, despite the fact that they lived only 8 kilometers from the mountain. At about 8 o'clock in the morning on May 8, its eruption began. Volcanic gases and lava flows rushed towards the city, causing fires. The city of Saint-Pierre was destroyed, killing more than 30,000 people. Of all the residents, only the criminal who was in the underground prison survived.
Now this city has been restored, and at the foot of the volcano, in memory of the terrible event, a museum of volcanology has been built.
Volcano Mont Pele 4. For five centuries, the Ruiz volcano, which is located in Colombia, did not show life, and people considered it dormant. But, unexpectedly, on November 13, 1985, a major eruption began. Due to the escaping lava flows, the temperature increased and the ice covering the volcano melted. The flows reached the city of Armero and practically destroyed it. According to official data, about 23 thousand people died or went missing, and tens of thousands of people lost their homes. Coffee plantations were significantly damaged, and Colombia's economy suffered enormous damage this year.
Volcano Ruiz, Colombia 
Volcano Unzen 5. The Japanese volcano Unzen, located in the southwest of the island of Kyushu, closes the top five most destructive eruptions. The activity of this volcano began in 1791, and on February 10, 1792, the first eruption occurred. This was followed by a series of earthquakes that caused significant destruction in the nearby city of Shimabara. A kind of dome of frozen lava formed over the city, and on May 21 it split due to another earthquake. A rock avalanche hit the city and the sea, causing a tsunami with waves reaching up to 23 meters. More than 5,000 people died from falling pieces of rock, and more than 10 thousand more lives were lost to the elements.
In the new millennium, the most terrible reports of disasters come from countries with high tectonic activity. Earthquakes cause enormous destruction and provoke tsunamis that wash away entire cities:
- the 2011 Japanese tsunami (16,000 victims);
- earthquake in Nepal in 2015 (8,000 victims);
- earthquake in Haiti in 2010 (100-500 thousand dead);
- 2004 tsunami in the Indian Ocean (according to confirmed data, 184 thousand in 4 countries).
Volcanoes in the new century bring only minor inconveniences. Emissions of volcanic ash interrupt air traffic, cause discomfort associated with evacuation and unpleasant smell sulfur.
But it was (and will be) not always like this. In the past, the largest eruptions caused much more serious consequences. Scientists believe that the longer a volcano sleeps, the stronger its next eruption will be. Today there are 1,500 volcanoes in the world that are up to 100 thousand years old. 500 million people live in close proximity to the fire-breathing mountains. Each of them lives on a powder keg, because people have not learned to accurately predict the time and place of a likely disaster.
The most terrible eruptions are associated not only with magma escaping from the depths in the form of lava, but also with explosions, fragments of flying rock, and changes in relief; smoke and ash covering vast areas, carrying chemical compounds that are deadly to humans.
Let's look at the 10 deadliest events of the past that resulted from a volcanic eruption.
Kelud (about 5,000 dead)
An active Indonesian volcano is located 90 kilometers from the second most populous city in the country - Surabaya, on the island of Java. The strongest officially recorded eruption of Kelud is considered to be a catastrophe that killed more than 5,000 people in 1919. A special feature of the volcano is the lake located inside the crater. On May 19 of that year, the reservoir, boiling under the influence of magma, brought down about 38 million cubic meters of water on residents of nearby villages. Along the way, silt, dirt, and stones mixed with the water. The population suffered more from the mudflow than from the explosion and lava.
After the incident in 1919, the authorities took measures to reduce the area of the lake. Last eruption the volcano is dated 2014. As a result, 2 people died.
Santa Maria (5,000 - 6,000 victims)
The volcano, located in the central part of the American continent (in Guatemala), had been dormant for about 500 years before its first eruption in the 20th century. Having lulled the vigilance of the locals, the earthquake that began in the fall of 1902 was not given special significance. The most terrible power The explosion that occurred on October 24 destroyed one of the mountain slopes. Over three days, 5,000 residents were killed by 5,500 cubic meters of magma and bursting rock. A column of smoke and ash from the smoking mountain spread 4,000 km to the American San Francisco. Another 1,000 residents suffered from epidemics caused by the eruption.
Lucky (more than 9,000 dead)
The most powerful of known eruptions Icelandic volcanoes. In July 1783, Lucky woke up, completely unhappy. Lava from its vent flooded about 600 square kilometers of the island. But the most dangerous consequences were the clouds of toxic smoke that could be observed even in China. Fluoride and sulfur dioxide killed all crops and most of the island's livestock. Slow death from starvation and toxic gases overtook more than 9,000 (20% of the population) of Iceland's inhabitants.
Other parts of the planet were also affected. The decrease in air temperature in the Northern Hemisphere as a result of the disaster led to crop failure throughout the United States, Canada and part of Eurasia.
Vesuvius (6,000 - 25,000 casualties)
One of the most famous natural disasters happened in 79 new era. Vesuvius, according to various sources, killed from 6 to 25 thousand ancient Romans. For a long time, this catastrophe was considered a fiction and a hoax by Pliny the Younger. But in 1763, archaeological excavations finally convinced the world of the existence and death, under a layer of ash, ancient city Pompeii. The smoke curtain reached Egypt and Syria. It is reliably known that Vesuvius destroyed three whole cities (also Stabiae and Herculaneum).
The Russian artist Karl Bryullov, who was present at the excavations, was so impressed by the history of Pompeii that he dedicated the most famous of his paintings to the city national painting. Vesuvius still poses a huge danger; it is not for nothing that on our website there is an article about the planet itself, in which Vesuvius is given special attention.
Unzen (15,000 dead)
No disaster rating is complete without a country rising sun. The most powerful eruption in Japanese history took place in 1792. The Unzen volcano (actually a complex consisting of four volcanic domes), located on the Shimabara Peninsula, is to blame for the death of 15 thousand inhabitants; it played the role of an intermediary. Unzen, which had been erupting for several months, gradually, as a result of tremors, displaced one of the flanks of the Mayu-Yama dome. A landslide caused by rock movement buried 5 thousand inhabitants of the island of Kyushu. The twenty-meter tsunami waves provoked by Unzen caused great casualties (10,000 dead).
Nevado del Ruiz (23,000 - 26,000 victims)
Located in the Colombian Andes, the Ruiz stratovolcano is notorious for causing lahars (a flow of mud from volcanic ash, rock and water). The largest convergence occurred in 1985 and is better known as the “Armero Tragedy.” Why did people remain in such dangerous proximity to the volcano, since even before 1985 lahars were the scourge of the region?
It's all about fertile soils, generously fertilized with volcanic ash. The prerequisites for a future disaster became noticeable a year before the incident. A small mudflow dammed the local river, and magma rose to the surface, but the evacuation never took place.
When a column of smoke rose from the crater on November 13, local authorities advised not to panic. But a small eruption led to the melting of the glacier. Three mud flows, the largest of which reached thirty meters in width, destroyed the city in a matter of hours (23 thousand dead and 3 thousand missing).
Montagne-Pelée (30,000 - 40,000 dead)
1902 brought another deadly eruption on our list. The resort island of Martinique was hit by the awakening stratovolcano Mont Pele. And played again decisive role carelessness of the authorities. Explosions in the crater, which brought down stones on the heads of the inhabitants of Saint-Pierre; The volcanic mud and lava that destroyed the sugar factory on May 2 did not convince the local governor of the seriousness of the situation. He personally persuaded the workers who fled the city to return.
And on May 8 there was an explosion. One of the schooners that entered the harbor decided to leave the port of Saint-Pierre in time. It was the captain of this ship (Roddam) who informed the authorities about the tragedy. A powerful pyroclastic flow covered the city with tremendous speed, and upon reaching the water, it raised a wave that washed away most of the ships in the harbor. In 3 minutes, 28,000 residents were either burned alive or died due to gas poisoning. Many died later from their burns and wounds.
The local prison provided an amazing rescue. The criminal imprisoned in the dungeon was spared both the lava flow and the poisonous smoke.
Krakatoa (36,000 victims)
The most famous to a wide circle people of volcanic eruptions are led by Krakatoa, which brought down all its fury in 1883. The destructive power of the Indonesian volcano impressed contemporaries. And today the catastrophe of the late 19th century is included in all encyclopedias and reference books.
An explosion with a power of 200 megatons of TNT (10 thousand times more powerful than during the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima) destroyed an 800-meter mountain and the island on which it was located. The blast wave circled the globe more than 7 times. The sound from Krakatoa (possibly the loudest on the planet) was heard at a distance of more than 4000 km from the eruption site, in Australia and Sri Lanka.
86% of the dead (about 30 thousand people) suffered from a powerful tsunami caused by a raging fiery mountain. The rest were covered in debris from Krakatoa and volcanic debris. The eruption caused global climate changes on the planet. Average annual temperature due to negative impact emitted smoke and ash, fell by more than 1 degree Celsius and recovered to its previous level only after 5 years. Large casualties were avoided due to the low population density of the region.
Since 1950, a new volcano has erupted on the site of the old Krakatoa.
Tambora (50,000 - 92,000 dead)
The diameter of the crater of another Indonesian (who lives on a powder keg) volcano reaches 7,000 meters. This supervolcano (a semi-official term for a volcano capable of causing global climate change) is one of only 20 recognized by scientists as such.
The eruption began according to the usual scenario in such cases - with an explosion. But then an out-of-the-ordinary event happened: a huge fiery whirlwind formed, sweeping away everything in its path. The elements of fire and wind destroyed a village 40 km from the volcano to the ground.
Like Krakatoa, Tambora destroyed not only the civilization around it, but also itself. The tsunami, which occurred 5 days after the start of activity, claimed the lives of 4.5 thousand residents. A column of smoke blocked the sun for three days within a radius of 650 km from the volcano. Electrical discharges over the volcano accompanied the entire period of the eruption, which lasted three months. It claimed the lives of 12 thousand people.
The crew of the ship that arrived on the island with humanitarian aid was horrified by the picture of destruction they saw: the mountain was level with the plateau, the whole of Sumbawa was covered with debris and ash.
But the worst thing began later. As a result of the “nuclear winter,” more than 50 thousand people died from hunger and epidemics. In the United States, climate changes caused by the volcano provoked snow in June, and a typhus epidemic began in Europe. Crop failure and famine accompanied many places on the planet for three years.
Santorini (death of civilization)
The once large mountain and island near Greece, photographed from space, appears as a volcanic crater flooded with the waters of the Aegean Sea. It is impossible to establish, even approximately, the number of deaths from the eruption 3.5 thousand years ago. What is known for certain is that as a result of the eruption of Santorini, the Minoan civilization was completely destroyed. According to various sources, the resulting tsunami reached from 15 to 100 meters in height, covering space at a speed of 200 km/h.
By the way, Santorini is on our list in the world.
There is an assumption that the legendary Atlantis was destroyed by a volcano, which is indirectly confirmed by many sources of the ancient civilizations of Greece and Egypt. Some Old Testament stories are also associated with the eruption.
And although these versions are still just legends, we should not forget that Pompeii, at one time, was also considered a hoax.
Today on the surface of the Earth there are about 600 active volcanoes and up to 1000 extinct ones. In addition, there are approximately 10 thousand more of them hiding under water. Most of them are located at the junctions of tectonic plates. About 100 volcanoes are concentrated around Indonesia, there are about 10 in the western American states, and a cluster of volcanoes is also noted in the area of Japan, the Kuril Islands and Kamchatka. But they are all nothing compared to the one megavolcano that scientists fear most.
The most dangerous volcanoes
Any existing volcano, even a dormant one, poses one danger or another. No volcanologist or geomorphologist undertakes to determine which of them is the most dangerous, since it is impossible to accurately predict the time and strength of the eruption of any of them. The title of “the most dangerous volcano in the world” is simultaneously claimed by the Roman Vesuvius and Etna, the Mexican Popocatepetl, the Japanese Sakurajima, the Colombian Galeras, located in the Congo Nyiragongo, in Guatemala - Santa Maria, in Hawaii - Manua Loa and others.
If the danger of a volcano is assessed by the estimated damage it can cause, then it would be reasonable to turn to history that describes what consequences brought the most dangerous eruptions volcanoes in the world in the past. For example, the well-known Vesuvius carried away in 79 AD. e. up to 10 thousand lives and wiped out two major cities. The eruption of Krakatoa in 1883, which was 200 thousand times stronger than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, echoed across the Earth and took the lives of 36 thousand islanders.
The eruption of a volcano called Laki in 1783 led to the destruction of a huge part of the livestock and food supplies, due to which 20% of the population of Iceland died of starvation. The following year became a lean year for the whole of Europe because of Lucky. All this shows what large-scale consequences it can have for people
Destructive supervolcanoes
But did you know that all the biggest dangerous ones are nothing compared to the so-called supervolcanoes, the eruption of each of which thousands of years ago brought truly catastrophic consequences for the entire Earth and changed the climate on the planet? Eruptions of such volcanoes could have a force of 8 points, and ash with a volume of at least 1000 m 3 was thrown to a height of at least 25 km. This led to prolonged sulfur precipitation, lack of sunlight for many months and covering a vast area of the earth's surface with huge layers of ash.
Supervolcanoes are distinguished by the fact that at the site of the eruption they have not a crater, but a caldera. This circus-shaped basin with a relatively flat bottom is formed as a result of the fact that after a series of powerful explosions with the release of smoke, ash and magma, the upper part of the mountain collapses.
The most dangerous supervolcano
Scientists know about the existence of approximately 20 supervolcanoes. Today, on the site of one of these terrifying giants, Lake Taupa in New Zealand is located; another supervolcano is hidden under the one located on the other. Examples of supervolcanoes include Long Valley in California, Valleys in New Mexico and Aira in Japan.
But the most dangerous volcano in the world is the Yellowstone supervolcano, which is most “ripe” for an eruption, located in the western American states. It is he who forces volcanologists and geomorphologists in the United States, and throughout the world, to live in a state of increasing fear, forcing them to forget about all the most dangerous active volcanoes in the world.
Location and size of Yellowstone
The Yellowstone Caldera is located in the northwestern United States, in the state of Wyoming. It was first spotted by satellite in 1960. The caldera, which measures approximately 55 * 72 km, is part of the world famous Yellowstone National Park. A third of the nearly 900,000 hectares of parkland is located within the volcano's caldera.
Under the Yellowstone crater to this day rests a giant bubble of magma about 8,000 m deep. The temperature of the magma inside it is close to 1000 0 C. Thanks to this, many hot springs bubble in the territory of Yellowstone Park, from cracks in earth's crust Clouds of steam and gas mixtures rise.
There are also many geysers and mud pots there. The reason for this was a vertical flow of solid rock 660 km wide, heated to a temperature of 1600 0 C. Under the territory of the park at a depth of 8-16 km there are two branches of this stream.
Yellowstone's past eruptions
The first eruption of Yellowstone, which occurred, according to scientists, more than 2 million years ago, was the largest disaster on Earth in the entire history of its existence. Then, according to volcanologists, about 2.5 thousand km 3 of rock was released into the atmosphere, and the highest point these emissions reached was 50 km above the earth’s surface.
The biggest and dangerous volcano the world began to re-erupt more than 1.2 million years ago. Then the volume of emissions was approximately 10 times less. The third eruption occurred 640 thousand years ago. It was then that the walls of the crater collapsed and the caldera that exists today was formed.
Why you should be afraid of the Yellowstone Caldera today
In the light latest changes on the territory of Yellowstone National Park, scientists are becoming increasingly clear which volcano is the most dangerous in the world. What's going on there? Scientists were alarmed by the following changes, which especially intensified in the 2000s:
- In the six years leading up to 2013, the ground covering the caldera rose by as much as 2 meters, compared with only 10 cm in the previous 20 years.
- New hot geysers erupted from the ground.
- The frequency and strength of earthquakes in the Yellowstone caldera area is increasing. In 2014 alone, scientists recorded about 2,000 of them.
- In some places, underground gases make their way through the layers of the earth to the surface.
- The water temperature in the rivers increased by several degrees.
This frightening news alarmed the public, and especially the residents of the North American continent. Many scientists agree that the supervolcano will erupt this century.
Consequences of the eruption for America
It is not for nothing that many volcanologists believe that the Yellowstone caldera is the most dangerous volcano in the world. They assume that its next eruption will be as powerful as the previous ones. Scientists equate it to the explosion of a thousand atomic bombs. This means that within a radius of 160 km around the epicenter, everything will be completely destroyed. An ash-covered area stretching 1,600 km around will turn into a “dead zone.”
The eruption of Yellowstone can lead to the eruption of other volcanoes and the formation of powerful tsunamis. There will be a national emergency for the United States and martial law will be imposed. Information comes from various sources that America is preparing for disaster: building shelters, making more than a million plastic coffins, drawing up an evacuation plan, drawing up agreements with countries on other continents. IN Lately The United States prefers to remain silent about the true state of affairs at the Yellowstone Caldera.
Yellowstone Caldera and the end of the world
The eruption of the caldera located under Yellowstone Park will bring disaster not only to America. The picture that can unfold in this case looks sad for the whole world. Scientists have calculated that if the release to a height of 50 km lasts only two days, then the “cloud of death” during this time will cover an area twice as large as the entire American continent.
In a week, emissions will reach India and Australia. The sun's rays will drown in thick volcanic smoke and a long one and a half year (at least) winter will come to Earth. The average air temperature on Earth will drop to -25 0 C, and in some places it will reach -50 0. People will die under debris falling from the sky from hot lava, from cold, hunger, thirst and the inability to breathe. According to assumptions, only one person in a thousand will survive.
The eruption of the Yellowstone caldera can, if not completely destroy life on earth, then radically change the conditions of existence of all living things. No one can say for sure whether this most dangerous volcano in the world will erupt in our lifetime, but the existing fears are indeed justified.
Volcanoes are one of the most treacherous and cruel natural phenomena. They hide for hundreds of years, creating the illusion of safety, and then wake up and destroy all life around. One volcano can consume entire cities, turn summer into winter, and change the course of history forever. Scientists predict that it is these monsters that are capable of destroying our civilization. The time has come to talk about the most terrible volcanic eruptions.
Vesuvius - the killer of ancient cities
Eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD. e. was not the most powerful in history, but definitely one of the most catastrophic. In two days, he destroyed a large city of the Roman Empire, which was inhabited by 20 thousand people - Pompeii. People were sure that the volcano had fallen asleep forever, so when a roar began to be heard from the side of the mountain, they continued to go about their business.
Source: ice-nut
As pieces of pumice and flakes of ash fell from the sky, people began to leave Pompeii. Several thousand people remained in the city and were doomed to death.
Scientists concluded that the people who did not manage to leave the city were killed by a pyroclastic flow. This is a rapidly rushing avalanche consisting of hot ash, pumice and volcanic gases. Six such streams descended from Vesuvius, burying Pompeii and three other smaller settlements - Herculaneum, Oplontis and Stabiae.
The video shows a reconstruction of this terrible event.
Tambora - the volcano that caused the "year without a summer"
The eruption of Mount Tambora in April 1815 on the island of Sumbawa, according to various sources, claimed the lives of 70 to 170 thousand people. No other volcano in history has killed so many people.
source: stormnews Tambora woke up with a deafening explosion. The islands located in the vicinity of the volcano began to be covered with volcanic ash. When pyroclastic flows began to descend from the slopes of the mountain, people who found themselves in their path had practically no chance of survival - about 12 thousand people died. The volcano destroyed three kingdoms with a distinctive culture - Pecat, Sangar and Tambora. Tens of thousands more people died after the eruption.
source: set-travel With his eruption, Tambora caused the so-called year without summer - from May to September 1816 there were frosts in Europe and North America, which led to crop failure and, as a result, death of people from hunger and disease.
Krakatoa - the volcano that created the most powerful explosion in history
The eruption of Krakatoa Volcano in 1883 affected the whole world. The disaster affected the planet’s climate and “repainted” the sun in green and blue shades for several months. The volcano announced its awakening with a powerful roar that could be heard five thousand kilometers away. It is believed to be the loudest sound in history. The explosion tore the deserted island of Krakatoa to pieces. The shock wave blew out glass in buildings located within a radius of 130 km from Krakatoa.
source: wulkano Volcanic precipitation blocked out the sun, plunging the area surrounding the volcano into darkness. A hot pyroclastic flow swept through the water and reached populated areas.
Those who survived faced a new test - the volcano generated a tsunami. Five giant waves made landfall, flooding the islands of Sumatra and Java. About 300 villages and cities were destroyed. According to official data, about 40 thousand people became victims of Krakatoa.
The disaster changed the climate on the planet for several years, causing cooling. The release of a huge amount of ash into the atmosphere caused an unusual phenomenon - circles (halos) appeared around the Sun, and the celestial body itself turned green and blue for several months.
Witness the destructive power of a pyroclastic flow.
Vulcan Lucky - "Slow Killer"
The Laki volcano in Iceland began to erupt in 1783. Lava poured out through the faults that appeared as a result of tremors for eight months.
source: esgeo The situation was aggravated by the awakening of Laki's neighbor, the Grimsvötn volcano. Was released into the atmosphere great amount poisonous gases - sulfur dioxide and hydrogen fluoride. These compounds provoked acid rain, which destroyed animals and vegetation. The eruption destroyed crops and most of the livestock. As a result, more than 20% of Iceland's population died from hunger and disease.
The toxic fog has spread to Europe. The effects of the Laki eruption were felt for another two years. The entire Northern Hemisphere experienced a cold snap, causing abnormally cold winters. Crop failure and livestock loss led to famine and killed tens of thousands of people.
Pinatubo struck a blow to the planet's ozone layer
The powerful eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippine Islands in 1991 was one of the most destructive in the 20th century. Vulcan was silent for 600 years. During this time, thousands of Filipinos settled on its slopes. The explosion occurred on June 12, and a column of smoke and ash rose above the volcano.
August 24‑25, 79 AD an eruption occurred that was considered extinct Vesuvius volcano, located on the shores of the Gulf of Naples, 16 kilometers east of Naples (Italy). The eruption led to the destruction of four Roman cities - Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontium, Stabia - and several small villages and villas. Pompeii, located 9.5 kilometers from the crater of Vesuvius and 4.5 kilometers from the base of the volcano, was covered with a layer of very small pieces of pumice about 5-7 meters thick and covered with a layer of volcanic ash. With the onset of night, lava flowed from the side of Vesuvius, everywhere fires started, and the ash made it difficult to breathe. On August 25, along with an earthquake, a tsunami began, the sea retreated from the shores, and a black thundercloud hung over Pompeii and surrounding cities, hiding the Misensky cape and the island of Capri. Most of the population of Pompeii was able to escape, but about two thousand people died on the streets and in the houses of the city from poisonous sulfur dioxide gases. Among the victims was the Roman writer and scientist Pliny the Elder. Herculaneum, located seven kilometers from the crater of the volcano and about two kilometers from its base, was covered with a layer of volcanic ash, the temperature of which was so high that all wooden objects were completely charred. The ruins of Pompeii were accidentally discovered at the end of the 16th century, but systematic Excavations began only in 1748 and are still ongoing, along with reconstruction and restoration.
March 11, 1669 an eruption occurred Mount Etna in Sicily, which lasted until July of the same year (according to other sources, until November 1669). The eruption was accompanied by numerous earthquakes. Lava fountains along this fissure gradually moved downwards, and the largest cone formed near the city of Nikolosi. This cone is known as Monti Rossi (Red Mountain) and is still clearly visible on the slope of the volcano. Nikolosi and two nearby villages were destroyed on the first day of the eruption. In another three days, lava flowing south down the slope destroyed four more villages. At the end of March, two larger cities were destroyed, and at the beginning of April, lava flows reached the outskirts of Catania. Lava began to accumulate under the fortress walls. Some of it flowed into the harbor and filled it. On April 30, 1669, lava flowed through top part fortress walls. The townspeople built additional walls across the main roads. This stopped the advance of the lava, but the western part of the city was destroyed. The total volume of this eruption is estimated at 830 million cubic meters. Lava flows burned 15 villages and part of the city of Catania, completely changing the configuration of the coast. According to some sources, 20 thousand people, according to others - from 60 to 100 thousand.
October 23, 1766 on the island of Luzon (Philippines) began to erupt Mayon volcano. Dozens of villages were swept away and incinerated by a huge lava flow (30 meters wide), which flowed down the eastern slopes for two days. Following the initial explosion and flow of lava, Mayon Volcano continued to erupt for four more days, releasing large amounts of steam and watery mud. Grayish-brown rivers ranging from 25 to 60 meters wide fell down the slopes of the mountain within a radius of up to 30 kilometers. They completely swept away roads, animals, villages with people on their way (Daraga, Kamalig, Tobaco). More than 2,000 residents died during the eruption. Basically, they were swallowed up by the first lava flow or secondary mud avalanches. For two months, the mountain spewed ash and poured lava onto the surrounding area.
April 5-7, 1815 an eruption occurred Tambora volcano on the Indonesian island of Sumbawa. Ash, sand and volcanic dust were thrown into the air to a height of 43 kilometers. Stones weighing up to five kilograms were scattered over a distance of up to 40 kilometers. The Tambora eruption affected the islands of Sumbawa, Lombok, Bali, Madura and Java. Subsequently, under a three-meter layer of ash, scientists found traces of the dead kingdoms of Pecat, Sangar and Tambora. Simultaneously with the volcanic eruption, huge tsunamis 3.5-9 meters high were formed. Having flown away from the island, the water fell on neighboring islands and drowned hundreds of people. About 10 thousand people died directly during the eruption. At least 82 thousand more people died from the consequences of the disaster - hunger or disease. The ash that shrouded Sumbawa destroyed crops and buried the irrigation system; acid rain poisoned the water. For three years after Tambora's eruption, the entire globe was enveloped in a shroud of dust and ash particles, reflecting some of the sun's rays and cooling the planet. The next year, 1816, Europeans felt the consequences of a volcanic eruption. It entered the annals of history as “the year without summer.” The average temperature in the Northern Hemisphere fell by about one degree, and in some areas even by 3-5 degrees. Large areas of crops suffered from spring and summer frosts on the soil, and famine began in many areas.
August 26-27, 1883 an eruption occurred Krakatoa volcano, located in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra. Houses on nearby islands collapsed due to tremors. On August 27, at about 10 o'clock in the morning, a gigantic explosion occurred, an hour later - a second explosion of the same force. More than 18 cubic kilometers of rock debris and ash shot up into the atmosphere. The waves of the tsunami caused by the explosions instantly swallowed up cities, villages, and forests on the coasts of Java and Sumatra. Many islands disappeared under water along with the population. The tsunami was so powerful that it went around almost the entire planet. In total, on the coasts of Java and Sumatra, 295 cities and villages were wiped off the face of the earth, over 36 thousand people died, and hundreds of thousands were left homeless. The coasts of Sumatra and Java have changed beyond recognition. On the coast of the Sunda Strait, fertile soil was washed away down to the rocky base. Only a third of the island of Krakatoa survived. In terms of the amount of water and rock moved, the energy of the Krakatoa eruption is equivalent to the explosion of several hydrogen bombs. The strange glow and optical phenomena persisted for several months after the eruption. In some places above the Earth, the sun appeared blue and the moon appeared bright green. And the movement of dust particles ejected by the eruption in the atmosphere allowed scientists to establish the presence of a “jet” stream.
May 8, 1902 Mont Pele volcano, located on Martinique, one of the islands Caribbean Sea, literally exploded into pieces - four strong explosions sounded, similar to cannon shots. They threw out a black cloud from the main crater, which was pierced by flashes of lightning. Since the emissions did not come through the top of the volcano, but through side craters, all volcanic eruptions of this type have since been called “Peleian”. Superheated volcanic gas, due to its high density and high speed of movement, spread above the ground itself, penetrated into all the cracks. A huge cloud covered the area of complete destruction. The second zone of destruction stretches another 60 square kilometers. This cloud, formed from super-hot steam and gases, weighed down by billions of particles of hot ash, moving at a speed sufficient to carry fragments of rocks and volcanic emissions, had a temperature of 700-980 ° C and was able to melt glass. Mont Pele erupted again on May 20, 1902, with almost the same force as on May 8. The Mont Pelee volcano, breaking into pieces, destroyed one of the main ports of Martinique, Saint-Pierre, along with its population. 36 thousand people died instantly, hundreds of people died from side effects. The two survivors became celebrities. Shoemaker Leon Comper Leander managed to escape within the walls of his own house. He miraculously survived, although he received severe burns to his legs. Louis Auguste Cypress, nicknamed Samson, was in a prison cell during the eruption and remained there for four days, despite serious burns. After being rescued, he was pardoned, soon he was hired by the circus and during performances he was shown as the only surviving resident of Saint-Pierre.
June 1, 1912 eruption began Katmai volcano in Alaska, which had been dormant for a long time. On June 4, ash material was ejected, which, mixed with water, formed mud flows; on June 6, an explosion of colossal force occurred, the sound of which was heard in Juneau 1,200 kilometers away and in Dawson 1,040 kilometers from the volcano. Two hours later a second explosion occurred enormous power and in the evening - the third. Then, for several days, there was an almost continuous eruption of colossal amounts of gases and solid products. During the eruption, about 20 cubic kilometers of ash and debris escaped from the crater of the volcano. The deposition of this material formed a layer of ash ranging from 25 centimeters to 3 meters thick, and much more near the volcano. The amount of ash was so great that for 60 hours there was complete darkness around the volcano at a distance of 160 kilometers. On June 11, volcanic dust fell in Vancouver and Victoria at a distance of 2200 km from the volcano. In the upper layers of the atmosphere it spread throughout the entire territory North America and fell into large quantities in the Pacific Ocean. For a whole year, small ash particles moved in the atmosphere. Summer across the planet turned out to be much colder than usual, since more than a quarter of the sun's rays falling on the planet were retained in the ash curtain. In addition, in 1912, amazingly beautiful scarlet dawns were celebrated everywhere. At the site of the crater, a lake with a diameter of 1.5 kilometers formed - the main attraction of the lake formed in 1980. National Park and Katmai Nature Reserve.
December 13-28, 1931 an eruption occurred volcano Merapi on the island of Java in Indonesia. Over two weeks, from December 13 to 28, the volcano erupted a stream of lava about seven kilometers long, up to 180 meters wide and up to 30 meters deep. The white-hot stream scorched the earth, burned the trees and destroyed all the villages in its path. In addition, both slopes of the volcano exploded, and erupted volcanic ash covered half of the island of the same name. During this eruption, 1,300 people died. The eruption of Mount Merapi in 1931 was the most destructive, but far from the last.
In 1976, a volcanic eruption killed 28 people and destroyed 300 houses. The significant morphological changes that took place in the volcano caused another disaster. In 1994, the dome that had formed in previous years collapsed, and the resulting massive release of pyroclastic material forced the local population to leave their villages. 43 people died.
In 2010, the number of victims from the central part of the Indonesian island of Java was 304 people. The list of dead included those who died from exacerbations of lung and heart disease and other chronic diseases caused by ash emissions, as well as those who died from injuries.
November 12, 1985 eruption began Ruiz Volcano in Colombia, considered extinct. On November 13, several explosions were heard one after another. The power of the strongest explosion, according to experts, was about 10 megatons. A column of ash and rock debris rose into the sky to a height of eight kilometers. The eruption that began caused the instant melting of the vast glaciers and eternal snows lying on the top of the volcano. The main blow fell on the city of Armero, located 50 kilometers from the mountain, which was destroyed in 10 minutes. Of the 28.7 thousand residents of the city, 21 thousand died. Not only Armero was destroyed, but also whole line villages Settlements such as Chinchino, Libano, Murillo, Casabianca and others were severely damaged by the eruption. Mudflows damaged oil pipelines and cut off fuel supplies to the southern and western parts of the country. As a result of the sudden melting of the snow lying in the Nevado Ruiz Mountains, nearby rivers overflowed their banks. Powerful flows of water washed away roads, demolished power and telephone line supports, and destroyed bridges. According to the official statement of the Colombian government, as a result of the eruption of the Ruiz volcano, 23 thousand people died or went missing, and about five thousand were seriously injured and maimed. About 4,500 residential buildings and administrative buildings were completely destroyed. Tens of thousands of people were left homeless and without any means of subsistence. Colombia's economy suffered significant damage.
June 10-15, 1991 an eruption occurred Volcano Pinatubo on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. The eruption began quite quickly and was unexpected, since the volcano became active after more than six centuries of hibernation. On June 12, the volcano exploded, throwing a mushroom cloud into the sky. Streams of gas, ash and rocks melted to a temperature of 980°C rushed down the slopes at speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour. For many kilometers around, all the way to Manila, day turned into night. And the cloud and the ash falling from it reached Singapore, which is 2.4 thousand kilometers away from the volcano. On the night of June 12 and the morning of June 13, the volcano erupted again, throwing ash and flames 24 kilometers into the air. The volcano continued to erupt on June 15 and 16. Mud flows and water washed away houses. As a result of numerous eruptions, approximately 200 people died and 100 thousand were left homeless
The material was prepared based on information from open sources