Vesuvius is the most famous volcano on earth and one of the most dangerous and studied. It is an explosive or effusive volcano in a dormant state since 1944. Its height, at 2010, is 1,281 m, rises inside a caldera of 4 km in diameter. The latter represents what remains of the former volcanic building (Monte Somma) after the great eruption of 79 AD, which caused the collapse of the south-eastern flank where the current crater was later formed. It is currently the only active volcano of this type in continental Europe.
In 1997 Vesuvius was elected by UNESCO (with the nearby Golden Mile) as one of the world’s biosphere reserves.
