Common types of volcanic eruptions occur as a result of magma being released through the vent of a volcanic mountain. Volcanologists have continued to classify volcanic eruptions into different types, some of the volcanoes are named where the place of the volcano is common while some are named after the resulting shape of the volcano. This paper will aim at identifying the type of volcanic eruption that took place in Pompeii and give enough support of the answer chosen.
The type of volcanic eruption that erupted near the city of Pompeii must have been a Plinian eruption. It is a Plinian eruption because that eruption is characterized by volcanic debris and hot gases that are ejected from the vent of the volcanic mountain being thrown high into the atmosphere, that leads to the debris being spread to a larger surface covering (Cioni, 2015). From the description by archaeologists who found remains of people embracing each other covered by ash and rock, that leads to a conclusion that it was a Plinian type of volcanic eruption, that is because the eruption is characterized by omission of gases and rocks thrown into larger surface areas.
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Plinian eruptions are also characterized by the ejection of powerful gases into the atmospheres of the earth, where short eruption can continue for not more than a day while long eruptions can proceed for many days (Senatore, 2014). Pompeii eruption must have been a longer eruption because Plinian long eruptions are the ones that start with the production of volcanic ash, the ash may end up being deposited over a large area, that is may be the reason that led to the city near Pompeii being covered by the eruption because when a Plinian eruption occurs, it throughs ashes and debris over a large area. To conclude, the type of eruption in Pompeii must have been a Plinian type of volcanic eruption as supported by the evidences above.
References
Cioni, R., Pistolesi, M., & Rosi, M. (2015). Plinian and sSbplinian Eruptions. In The Encyclopedia of Volcanoes (pp. 519-535). Academic Press.
Senatore, M. R., Ciarallo, A., & Stanley, J. D. (2014). Pompeii Damaged by Volcaniclastic Debris Flows Triggered Centuries Prior to the 79 AD Vesuvius Eruption. Geoarchaeology , 29 (1), 1-15.
