The city of Naples is well known for one of its active volcanoes, Mount Vesuvius. However,
Vesuvius is not the only dangerous volcano which is present in the region. Just to the
west of Naples is a supervolcano known as Campi Flegrei or the Phlegraean Fields. This volcano
last erupted in 1538, and will erupt again. This video will discuss this active volcano,
and mention what its future hazards are. The Campi Flegrei volcano can be found along
the west coast of a portion of central Italy. Specifically, it is 16 kilometers northeast
of Ischia, and 10 kilometers west of Naples. From satellite, you can see a number of calderas
which have been formed by large eruptions from this volcano. One of these is referred to Astroni,
and measures 2 kilometers and width. However, these numerous smaller calderas help to conceal
two much larger calderas, formed by eruptions several orders of magnitude larger. These two
larger eruptions created calderas which were 9.5 kilometers and 13 kilometers wide, as shown here.
The volcano exists due to the subduction of the African tectonic plate underneath
the Eurasian plate. The subducted crust from this collision then melts and migrates upwards
until it erupts on the surface, creating a volcano. As a result, Campi Flegrei exists
for a very similar reason to Mount Vesuvius. The Phlegraean Fields began forming 47,000 years
ago, when a series of viscous lava flows erupted to form a lava dome known as Punta Marmolite.
7,000 years later, another lava dome formed to the northeast known as Cuma. The eruption of
this lava dome only slightly preceded the largest known eruption from Camp Flegrei.
The subsequent eruption took place around 39,000 years ago and was unfathomably
large. It started with a large explosion caused by the interaction of groundwater with magma.
Next, the eruption produced a towering column of ash with traveled more than 70 kilometers into the
atmosphere. Not long after this, a massive caldera collapse took place. Pyroclastic flows more than a
kilometer high crossed into Naples and spread into the sea. These dangerous pyroclastic flows killed
all life within 100 kilometers. 72 hours after the eruption had begun, it ended. What was left was
a 13 kilometer wide crater, much of which is now in the Mediterranean sea, and hundreds of meters
thick of volcanic rock near the eruption site. This eruption had a volcanic explosivity index of
7, and erupted 550 cubic kilometers of tephra. Between 35,000 and 15,000 years ago, a large
volcano was built from explosive and effusive eruptions in the caldera of the Campanian
Ignimbrite eruption. Then, 14,900 years ago, the volcano largely collapsed into the ocean
and formed a 9.5 kilometer wide caldera. The explosive eruption which caused this
caldera collapse was 20 times larger than the eruption from Vesuvius which destroyed Pompeii.
Volcanic activity continued once again around 10,000 years ago. During this period,
moderately large explosive eruptions occurred at the vents of Soccavo, Minapoli, and Pasani.
Over the next 6,000 years, more than a dozen explosive eruption took place in this volcanic
field which formed a number of medium sized volcanic craters. The largest of these occurred
in 2150 BC, which formed Monte Spina along with a several kilometer wide crater known as Agnano.
The first eruption to be directly observed and written about from Campi Flegrei occurred in
1198 AD, during the medieval period of Europe. This eruption of Solfatara did not produce any
lava, but was rather a small phreatic eruption which produced a column of ash.
The most recent eruption from Campi Flegrei occurred in 1538, and formed a new cinder
cone known as Monte Nuovo. This eruption produced medium distance pyroclastic flows,
which are unusual for cinder cone eruptions. As of 2021, the volcano has not produced another
eruption but is currently at a raised alert status. Small earthquake swarms are frequent,
which occur due to a shallow magma chamber which is only 1 to 2 kilometers beneath the surface.
Since 2011, several parts of the large volcanic caldera have been uplifted by as much as
60 centimeters due to the movement of magma. However, I would not worry about
an imminent eruption until the rate of uplift increases to more than a centimeter each day.
So, how soon will an eruption occur, and how large will it be?
We do not know when the next eruption will occur, but the odds of a new eruption are quite elevated
due to its current activity. The next eruption should occur as one of three eruption types.
From most likely to least likely, it could be a phreatic eruption, a phreatomagmatic eruption,
or a cinder cone forming eruption. Luckily, not enough magma is present beneath the surface
to create a new caldera and devastate central Italy. However, there is more than enough magma
to produce a volcanic eruption which is still considered large, rating as 3 or 4 on the volcanic
explosivity index. When the next eruption occurs, it could produce numerous hazards which include...
Lava flows, lava bombs, pyroclastic flows, landslides, earthquakes, potential volcano
caused tsunamis, fires, and ashfall. Luckily, the odds of an eruption are still relatively low,
and this volcano is one of the most monitored volcanoes on the planet. If an eruption
was about to happen, we would know as scientists. I hope that you enjoyed this video! If you would
like to request a specific topic, please leave a comment below!