Day of Disaster

    It’s a typical summer day in the beautiful city of Pompeii. The year is 79 A.D. The main street is packed with people—women in robes, men in long shirts called tunics. Children wear leather sandals that slap against the hot stone streets. 

    You’re surprised by how modern this city seems. It has a library, shops, and restaurants. You stop at a market with dozens of foods you can sample. Don’t you want to try roasted mice stuffed with nuts and rose petals? 

    As you exit the market, you look up. And that’s when you see it—the massive mountain that stands behind the city. That’s Mount Vesuvius. Yet you don’t give it much thought. And neither do the people of Pompeii. Why should they? It’s just a big mountain, sitting silent and still. 

    Except Mount Vesuvius is not just a mountain. It is a dangerous volcano.

    It’s a summer day in the city of Pompeii. The year is 79 A.D. The main street is packed with people. Women wear robes. Men wear long shirts called tunics. Kids wear leather sandals that slap against the hot stone streets. 

    You’re surprised by how modern this city seems. It has a library. It has shops and restaurants. There’s a market with many foods you can try. How about some roasted mice stuffed with nuts and rose petals? 

    See that big mountain behind the city? That’s Mount Vesuvius. You don’t give it much thought. No one else does either. It’s just a big mountain, sitting silent and still. 

    Except Mount Vesuvius is not just a mountain. It is a dangerous volcano.

    It’s a typical summer day in the beautiful city of Pompeii. The year is 79 A.D. Pompeii’s main street is packed with people—women in robes, men in long shirts called tunics, and children wearing leather sandals that slap against the hot stone streets. 

    This city appears surprisingly modern, with a library, shops, and restaurants. You stop at a market that offers dozens of delicacies, such as roasted mice stuffed with nuts and rose petals. 

    As you exit the market, you glance up and notice it—Mount Vesuvius, the massive mountain that looms behind the city. You don’t give Vesuvius much thought, and neither do the people of Pompeii. After all, it’s only a big mountain, sitting silent and still. 

    Except Mount Vesuvius is not just a mountain. It is a dangerous volcano.

    Vesuvius sits atop a crack in Earth’s crust. That’s the hard, rocky layer that covers the surface of our planet like the shell of an egg. The crack in the crust allows molten rock called magma to flow up from miles below. 

    A huge lake of magma boils under Vesuvius. But the people of Pompeii don’t know that. How could they? Vesuvius has been dormant—or asleep—for 1,500 years. 

    But for months, magma has been rising through the center of the volcano. Pressure is building. A giant eruption is coming.

    The people of Pompeii should have left for a safer place weeks before. If only they understood. But you do. So what are you doing standing around? Run!

    Vesuvius sits atop a crack in Earth’s crust. That’s the hard, rocky layer that covers our planet like the shell of an egg. The crack in the crust allows molten rock called magma to flow up from miles below. 

    A huge lake of magma boils under Vesuvius. But the people of Pompeii don’t know that. How could they? Vesuvius has been dormant—or asleep—for 1,500 years. 

    But for months, magma has been rising through the center of the volcano. Pressure is building. A giant eruption is coming. 

    The people of Pompeii should have left for a safer place weeks ago. If only they knew. But you do. So why are you standing there? Run!

    Mount Vesuvius sits atop a crack in Earth’s crust. That’s the hard, rocky layer that covers our planet like the shell of an egg. The crack in the crust allows molten rock called magma to flow up from miles below. 

    An enormous lake of magma boils under Vesuvius, but the people of Pompeii don’t know that. They have no experience with volcanic eruptions. Vesuvius has been dormant—or asleep—for 1,500 years. 

    But for months now, magma has been rising through the center of the volcano. Pressure is building. A gigantic eruption is coming. 

    The people of Pompeii should have evacuated weeks ago. If only they understood the danger. But you do—so what are you doing standing around? Run!

    But actually, it’s too late. BOOM! A powerful explosion shakes the city. People fall. Horses scream. Thick, gray smoke spews from the top of Mount Vesuvius. 

    Except it’s not smoke. 

    The intense heat from the eruption has turned millions of tons of solid rock into super-hot foam. This foam shoots 12 miles into the sky at rocket speeds. When it hits the freezing air high above Earth, the melted rock turns into tiny pebbles called pumice. 

    The pumice pours down on Pompeii with painful force. It is mixed with hot ash, which makes it difficult to breathe. You grab the hand of a little boy who has lost his family. Together, you run for your lives.

    Other people decide to stay behind, to guard their homes and businesses. They think this strange storm of ash and rock will soon end. 

    They are wrong.

    Too late. BOOM! An explosion shakes the city. People fall. Horses scream. Thick, gray smoke spews from the top of the volcano. 

    But wait. It’s not smoke. 

    The heat from the eruption has turned millions of tons of rock into super-hot foam. This foam shoots 12 miles into the sky. When it hits the freezing air high above Earth, the melted rock turns into tiny pebbles. These are called pumice. 

    The pumice pours down hard on Pompeii. It hurts. It is mixed with hot ash, which makes it hard to breathe. You grab the hand of a little boy who has lost his family. Together, you run for your lives.

    Some people stay behind. They want to guard their homes and businesses. They think the ash and rock will soon stop falling. 

    They are wrong.

    But actually, it’s too late. BOOM! A powerful explosion shakes the city. People fall to the ground, and horses scream. Thick, gray smoke spews from the top of Mount Vesuvius. 

    Except it’s not smoke. 

    The intense heat from the eruption has transformed millions of tons of solid rock into super-hot foam. This foam shoots 12 miles into the sky at rocket speeds. When it hits the freezing air high above Earth, the melted rock turns into tiny pebbles called pumice. 

    The pumice pours down on Pompeii with painful force. It is mixed with hot ash, which makes it difficult to breathe. You grab the hand of a little boy who has become separated from his family, and together you run for your lives.

    Other people decide to stay behind, to guard their homes and businesses. They believe this bizarre storm of ash and rock will soon end. 

    They are gravely mistaken.

    The sky turns black. As hours pass, the weight of the pumice causes roofs to fall in. People become trapped in their homes. 

    But that’s not all.

    Suddenly, a mixture of ash and melted rock called lava rushes down the mountain. It travels at up to 180 miles an hour. When it hits Pompeii, the people left behind die instantly. 

    In the weeks that follow, people search Pompeii for survivors. There are none. In fact, the entire city seems to have disappeared. Pompeii is buried under more than 10 feet of rock.

    The sky turns black. The weight of the pumice causes roofs to fall in. People get trapped in their homes. 

    But that’s not all. Suddenly, a mixture of ash and melted rock called lava rushes down the mountain. It travels at up to 180 miles an hour. When it hits Pompeii, the people there die instantly. 

    In the weeks that follow, people search Pompeii for survivors. There are none. In fact, the whole city seems to have disappeared. It’s buried under more than 10 feet of rock.

    The sky turns black. As hours pass, the weight of the pumice causes roofs to collapse, trapping people inside their homes. 

    But that’s not all.

    Suddenly, a mixture of ash and melted rock called lava rushes down the mountain at up to   180 miles an hour. When it hits Pompeii, the people left behind die instantly. 

    In the weeks that follow, people search Pompeii for survivors but find none. Indeed, the entire city appears to have vanished. Pompeii is buried under more than 10 feet of rock.

    You survived your day in Pompeii. You are one of the lucky ones who made it out before getting crushed. But before you go home, let’s take one more trip—to Pompeii today.

    For nearly 1,700 years, Pompeii was forgotten. It was rediscovered in 1748 and has been studied by scientists ever since. The layers of pumice and ash that fell on Pompeii formed a shell over the city. This shell preserved everything beneath it—almost like the city was frozen in time. Over the centuries, experts have dug up jewels, artwork, and statues. They even found the remains of a basket of eggs and a bowl of chicken soup. 

    As you walk through the ruins of Pompeii today, you can admire what’s left of houses, shops, and temples. And you can see Mount Vesuvius. It is silent and still. But don’t be fooled.

    Vesuvius has erupted more than 30 times since Pompeii was destroyed. The last time was in 1944. These eruptions were small. But scientists have no doubt the volcano will erupt again—with great force.

    Would you want to be there to see it? 

    You survived your day in Pompeii. Now let’s take one more trip: to Pompeii today. 

    For nearly 1,700 years, Pompeii was forgotten. It was rediscovered in 1748. Experts have studied it ever since. The pumice and ash that fell on Pompeii formed a shell over the city. This shell preserved everything under it. It’s almost like the city was frozen in time. Experts have dug up jewels, artwork, and statues. They even found the remains of  a basket of eggs and a bowl of chicken soup. 

    Walk through the ruins of Pompeii. You’ll see what’s left of houses, shops, and temples. And you’ll see Mount Vesuvius. It is silent  and still. But don’t be fooled.

    Vesuvius has erupted more than 30 times since Pompeii was destroyed. The last time was in 1944. These eruptions were small. But experts say the volcano will erupt again—with great force.

    Would you want to be there to see it?

    You survived your day in Pompeii. You were among the lucky people that got out of the city before escape became impossible. But before you go home, let’s take one more trip—to Pompeii today. 

    For nearly 1,700 years, Pompeii was forgotten. It was rediscovered in 1748, and scientists have been studying it ever since. The layers of pumice and ash that covered Pompeii formed a shell over the city, which preserved everything beneath  it—as if the city was frozen in time. Over the centuries, experts have unearthed jewels, artwork, and statues. They even found the remains of a basket of eggs and a bowl of chicken soup. 

    As you walk through the ruins of Pompeii today, you can examine what remains of houses, shops, and temples. You can also see Mount Vesuvius. The volcano is silent and still—but don’t be fooled.

    Mount Vesuvius has erupted more than 30 times since Pompeii was destroyed—most recently in 1944. These eruptions were minor, but scientists predict that the volcano will erupt again—with great force.

    Would you want to be there to see it?