Ancient Volcanic Eruption in Pompeii Caused Heat Waves Turning People's Brain to Glass: Study

A new study has revealed new details about the devastating volcanic eruption that annihilated the ancient Roman town of Pompeii.

IFLScience reports that it was discovered that people in a nearby town called Herculaneum was instantly destroyed and killed by this brief early heat wave, which reached temperatures of 550°C.

The Mount Vesuvius eruption in 79 CE is infamous for its destructive power and how it froze the city in time. The new study, however, sheds light on the initial heat wave, which was so intense that it turned people's brains to glass.

Ancient Town Near Pompeii Was Devastated by Wave of Hot Gas

The research team, who published their findings in the journal Scientific Reports, analyzed carbonized wood from several sites in Herculaneum, closer to Mount Vesuvius than Pompeii. By examining the wood, the researchers reconstructed the thermal events that occurred after the eruption.

The town was hit first by a diluted pyroclastic density current (PDC), a brief but intensely hot gas-particle flow.

The initial blast was so destructive that it turned the victims' brains into glass. The temperature of the first diluted PDC measured on Herculaneum's main street was over 550°C.

This was followed by a series of pyroclastic currents that buried the town beneath 20 meters of volcanic deposits. However, these later flows were characterized by lower temperatures.

The initial blast's extreme heat and brief duration left only a few decimeters of ash on the ground, which explains why it was never detected until now.

Nonetheless, the destructive power of diluted PDCs has been observed in more recent volcanic eruptions, such as that in Martinique in May 1902, where a gas flow of this type instantly killed nearly 30,000 people.

The Mount Pelée and Vesuvius eruptions, according to studies, are classic examples frequently cited by volcanologists and the media to demonstrate the hazards caused by rapid emplacement of a violent and unpredictable pyroclastic current.

Clues Found on Victims' Bodies

The researchers discovered numerous clues about the destructive event in the victims' remains. IFLScience notes that while many corpses at Pompeii were found in the typical post-mortem stance known as the pugilistic attitude, the bodies at Herculaneum were unable to adopt such a position due to the intense heat.

The discovery of a well-preserved vitrified brain inside an individual's skull at the Collegium Augustalium adds to the picture. According to the researchers, a brain can only be turned to glass if the heating event is brief and the tissue is not completely vaporized.

This crystal cerebellum's survival depended on subsequent pyroclastic currents remaining cool enough to allow for the accumulation of ash.

The study's findings have implications for modern residents of nearby Naples. If Vesuvius erupts again and produces another diluted PDC, the ability of shelters to prevent infiltration of the hot, dusty gas will determine survival.

According to the researchers, this could allow people who did not have the opportunity to evacuate earlier to survive and wait for rescue.