Seismograph Along Mount Vesuvius, Naples, Italy Stock Image

Mount Vesuvius, a stratovolcano in the Italian Gulf of Naples, is best known for its eruption in AD 79 that led to the burying and destruction of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Vesuvius is still regarded as an active volcano, although its current activity produces little more than steam from vents at the bottom of the crater.