Mount Vesuvius: Brain Vitrification

PRELIMS BITS – MAPS

Context

Researchers have confirmed that a man’s brain underwent vitrification during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, making it the only recorded instance of human brain tissue transforming into glass.

What is Vitrification?

Vitrification refers to the process in which a material turns into a glass-like, non-crystalline state. This occurs when substances are subjected to extreme heat, causing them to melt and then cool rapidly without forming a crystalline structure.

Mount Vesuvius

• Vesuvius is a stratovolcano composed of pyroclastic deposits, lava flows, and debris from lahars that collectively form its volcanic cone.

Location: Situated in southern Italy, it stands above the Bay of Naples on the Campania plain. It is the only active volcano on the European mainland.

Geological Formation: Vesuvius is part of the Campanian volcanic arc, which was formed due to the subduction of the African plate beneath the Eurasian plate. This arc also includes Mount Etna, the Phlegraean Fields (Campi Flegrei), and Stromboli.

79 AD Eruption: The volcano is best known for its catastrophic eruption in 79 AD, which led to the destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Unique Feature: A slab window—a tear in a subducting tectonic plate that creates an opening in the Earth’s mantle—exists beneath Vesuvius. This phenomenon results in chemical differences in its volcanic rocks compared to other volcanoes in the region.