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Volcanoes
by Peter Francis
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Volcano is an emotive word, often romanticized. Many people, thinking about volcanoes, consider them thrilling, even glamorous. Etria and Vesuvius are well-known examples, and the momentous destruction of Pompeii is one of the oldest disaster stories in history. But what is a volcano? And where, how and why does volcanism exist? Are eruptions predictable, and how dangerous, or even beneficial, are they? How do they affect the environment and influence climatic conditions? This is a clear and detailed book which fully answers these questions and describes the volcanic phenomenon in all its aspects. With eyewitness accounts, ranging from Vesuvius in A.D. 79 (the younger Pliny) to Krakatoa in 1883, and other well-documented terrestrial and sub-marine instances, Dr.…
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"This edition of Volcanoes was published as a ‘pocket’-sized Penguin book, and I have fond memories of reading it as a volcano-obsessed teenager. Peter wrote this as a book to be read, rather than as a textbook, and it retains a delightful and timeless quality. I remember being drawn to his descriptions of the magical volcanoes of the high Andes; indeed, so much so that I nearly went to study for a PhD with Peter Francis some years later. His accounts of the three ‘classic’ eruptions — of Vesuvius in AD 79, Krakatoa in 1883, and Mont Pelee in 1902 — are as good as you will find anywhere, with an enthralling mix of eyewitness accounts and volcanological insight. In volcanology, there is much to be learnt from comparing the eruption ‘of the day’ to case studies from the past, and for this reason Volcanoes is certainly a book to be re-read and enjoyed today."