Why did Mount Vesuvius erupt? Lydia (7)

I presume that you are asking about the famous eruption of AD 79 which buried the city of Pompeii under layers of ash, creating an amazing time capsule of Roman life that archaeologists are still exploring today.

We know that Vesuvius, which is an active volcano, has erupted at least 42 times and will probably erupt again in the future. Volcanoes erupt when the pressure from lava (the molten rock that is forced up from the earth’s core) builds up and either flows out like rivers of molten rock or causes a huge explosion. It’s a bit like shaking a bottle of fizzy drink (which builds up the pressure) and then taking the cap off….

Answered by:

Julian Richards

Julian Richards is best known as the TV archaeologist from Meet the Ancestors and Blood of the Vikings. He loves Stonehenge – and has even written a pop-up book about it!

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