Today I was reading the 1902 diary of a 14 year old boy who was writing his entry while looking at Mt. Vesuvius. I notice that Mt. Vesuvius has erupted dozens of time since 79 A.D.; when was the last eruption prior to 1902? Thanks.

Christopher White

Dear Christopher,

The 1902 eruption of Mt. Vesuvius actually began in December of 1875. It continued to April of 1906. The previous eruption was from December of 1870 to April of 1872. Mt. Vesuvius has erupted at least 41 times since 79 A.D., most recently in 1944.

Steve Mattox, University of North Dakota

Source of Information:

Simkin, T., and Siebert, L., 1994, Volcanoes of the World: Geoscience Press, Tucson, Arizona, 349 p.

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