In the Crater of a Volcano During an Eruption

Volcanology is one of the few modern sciences, where a researcher should be in a good physical form and have the courage and skills to work in harsh natural environments. All these features make up a romantic aureole for the science of volcanology. Heroic or, more precisely pseudo-heroic and athletic components of volcanology often attracts people that are far from science. The paper describes the most famous descents in the craters of erupting volcanoes that were conducted at the beginning of the XXth century — Stromboli (Italy) in 1914 and Mihara (Japan) in 1933. Also, examples of later real scientific works of Russian and foreign volcanologists are considered.

volcanology, volcano, crater, volcanic eruption, descent into crater