Vesuvius and the Path of the Gods

When I was in Ecuador last month I heard all about last year’s eruption on Cotopaxi. Although its last major eruption was in 1904, and there weren’t too many signs of activity when I peered down into the crater in 2010, there had been numerous warning signs.

In February it started smoking, and shortly afterwards the smell of sulphur became much stronger. By June the inside of the crater contained a great deal of water from the melting ice, and in August the volcano finally erupted. Debris bel...