Build up of pressure in the magma chamber causes Mt Vesuvius, a stratovolcano to erupt. When gases in the magma chamber are under immense heat and pressure they dissolve in the liquid rock, once this magma reaches the conduits (channels for conveying water or other fluid) the gases explode and may burst out the sides of the cone in addition to the summit crater.
Mt Vesuvius is a Stratovolcano also known as a composite volcano. Stratovolcanoes are also called composite as they are made of built up of alternating layers of lava flow, ash and blocks of unmelted stone. Stratovolcanoes form above the subduction zone at plate boundaries. They are known for erupting with great violence. They are larger than cinder cones nd result from a conduit system; vents lead from magma reservoir. When stratovolcanoes are dormant, like Mt Vesuvius, they have steep sides which meet at a relatively small crater.
Mount Vesuvius is one of many volcanoes in the Campanian volcanic arc, a series of volcanoes formed over a subduction zone …show more content…
The 79AD eruption is one of the most well known in the world, killing approximately 16 000 people. Ash, mud and rocks from this eruption covered the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Pompeii is known for its casts of people and animals frozen in time, which are a popular tourist attraction today. Mount Vesuvius experienced many violent eruptions from that late 1700s to the early 1900s, these eruptions damaged or destroyed many towns surrounding the volcano, some resulting in casualties. The eruption of 1906 killed more than 100 people. The last major eruption of Vesuvius occurred on the 18th march 1944 it is thought that Mt Vesuvius has an approximately 20 year eruption cycle, though it is difficult to predict when the next serious eruption will