Almost an incredible and terrible way to die. According to an expert who studies the thermal damage of human remains, this is also unlikely. El, a biological anthropologist at Warsaw University in Poland? Bieta Jaskulska said that although the victim was indeed killed by fire, the evaporation of skull and tissue after the explosion may be a bit excessive. El? Bieta Jaskulska was not involved in the new study. Jas Kurska told Life Science: "Too much heat makes the body evaporate on the spot. It is impossible. " [See photos of bones preserved during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius]
The victims killed by Mount Vesuvius were former residents of Herculaneum, a town closer to the crater than the famous ancient city of Pompeii. When Vesuvius erupts, it throws pumice, spews out volcanic ash, and finally spews out a mass of hot volcanic ash and deadly gas, which is called pyroclastic flow. Kristina Killgrove, a biological anthropologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, wrote the study for Forbes magazine, saying that many people in Pompeii were killed by falling debris. Others died from the turbulence of pyroclastic rocks.
In this new study, Peter Roper of the Federico II University Hospital in Naples and his colleagues examined the bones of people who fled the volcanic eruption in 12 seaside rooms in Herculaneum. 140 Among the dead, there were men, women and children, and at least one pregnant woman. Their 7-month-old fetal skeleton was found in the pelvis. People think that people in the shelter may die of asphyxiating gas, and the fine ash in the pyroclastic flow fills the room. [25 Terrible Archaeological Discoveries]
Petrone and his colleagues studied 103 bone samples from coastal caves and nearby beaches by mass spectrometry (a method to determine the types of substances in samples according to molecular mass). They are particularly interested in the red residue covering some bones and skulls. The results of "kdspe" and "kdsps" show that the content of iron and iron oxide in the residue is high. These residues, especially those on the skull, indicate "huge heat-induced bleeding", the author wrote in a research report published online in the journal Library of Science of China on September 26th. More importantly, they added, some star-shaped fractures on the skull may indicate that the evaporation of blood and brain substances caused the skull to explode like a baked potato without holes in the microwave oven, and heat-driven death, rather than suffocation and other features of bones. For example, most fire victims will take a "boxing" posture when they die, with their arms and legs pulled up as if they were ready to punch and kick at any time. This is because muscles contract when they are dry. But Herculaneum's victims rarely show complete boxing postures, Petrone and his colleagues wrote, which shows that their muscles burn so fast that they never have time to contract like a typical death at the stake.
"The rapidity of this process can be proved by the thermal effect found on bones, which means that after the tissue evaporates, volcanic ash is still hot enough to carbonize bones. He said that the cause of death may be heat shock or high temperature, especially the blood boiling in the brain and skull.
In a new paper, he and his colleagues concluded that the evidence "seems to show that the body fluids and soft tissues of the victims quickly evaporated due to exposure to the high temperature of volcanic ash avalanche".
Fire-killed pyroclastic flows can undeniably lead to heat shock death-there are many other ways. 1990 A study on the medical effects of volcanic eruption published in the Bulletin of Volcanology found that in the direct path of pyroclastic flow, bodies were burned, buried in ashes and hit by boulders and rocks; One person was dismembered in the direct path of the pyroclastic flow of San hellens volcano. In addition, a person who took refuge in his car suffocated and died. According to this study, among the parameters in the DC area of Mount San hellens, asphyxia is the more common cause of death than thermal burn. [Photo: Incredible eruption of Mount St. hellens]
St Pierre outbreak in Martinique 1902, 28,000 people died. According to the newspaper report of 1990, the body was found in many different positions, some of which were in boxing posture, suggesting exposure to high temperature, while others were stretched or twisted. Only two people survived in the whole city: a shoemaker took shelter from the rain in his house, everyone around him died, probably suffocated, and a prisoner was imprisoned in a thick-walled cell with only a small grate. Both of them were badly burned. There were also several survivors on the boat in the city port, who were only touched by the edge of the pyroclastic cloud. The living people are those who try not to be hurt by inhaling hot, glass-sharp volcanic ash fragments, but many people still have thermal burns on their skin.
In June, a volcanic eruption in Tierra del Fuego, Guatemala, killed more than 65,438,000 people, most of whom were victims of pyroclastic flows. These flows were filmed. According to the Associated Press, bodies found in volcanic ash streams generally still have soft tissues, but they are often burned beyond recognition.
The victim of Herculaneum probably died immediately as a result of thermal burns to the skin and respiratory tract. They may also survive heat flow and suffocation. Jas Kurska said, but it is difficult to tell which one is true according to the new analysis.
The damage shown by the bone is consistent with the first stage of combustion. They turned black and burnt, indicating that the meat was indeed burnt in some places. But Jas Kurska said that this does not necessarily prove that the thermal shock is instantaneous. The victim may suffocate, be burned to death immediately after death, or experience two (or equally fatal) effects at the same time. "kdspe" and "kdsps" imagined that the explosion melted the meat on the bone and exploded the victim's skull, which was even more far-fetched. Yakuska said:
Researchers estimate that the temperature of the pyroclastic flow will reach 392 to 932 degrees Fahrenheit (200 to 500 degrees Celsius). It's not enough for the human body to be blown up in an instant. Jas Kurska said that the temperature range of modern crematoriums is 65,438+0,472 to 65,438+0,832 degrees Fahrenheit (800 to 65,438+0,000 degrees Celsius), and they still need some time to burn the meat on the bones.
She said: "We have tables to describe every change in the body caused by heat exposure."
Between 65,438 and 0,292 degrees Fahrenheit (700 degrees Celsius), Jas Kurska said it took 65,438+00 minutes to burn the meat on the skull and severely scorch the face. It takes 25 minutes to cook the meat on the leg. The pyroclastic flow (which may move at the speed of 186 mph or 300 km/h) does not incinerate the muscles before they contract, but is more likely to be too fast to completely burn the muscles into a "boxing posture".
Jas Kurska said that it is impossible for the victims' boiling brains to explode their skulls. She said that there are some scientific documents showing that heated skulls may explode, but the evidence is not reliable. The video inside the crematorium shows that the skull was heated to 1832 degrees Fahrenheit (1000 degrees Celsius) and no explosion occurred. After all, the skull is not a closed system. Their buttocks, mouths, noses and eyes are all open. Ja Skur Ska said that any liquid evaporated from the skull has many places to escape. However, Yakushka said:
Bones become brittle when burned and are easily broken due to thermal expansion. The damage on the skeleton of Herculaneum is consistent with this thermal expansion cracking. [spontaneous human combustion's Facts and Theories]
Finally, Jas Kurska said that iron-rich residues on bones probably came from evaporated blood and body fluids. But it is hard to say whether it happened at the moment when the pyroclastic cloud hit, or during the eruption in the following hours, when the hot volcanic ash continued to fall on the victims.
"We know that this is not a process. When it starts, it will soon be over. Volcanic ash and pyroclastic clouds are likely to fall repeatedly in at least a few hours. " Whether the study of cremated remains is similar to the destruction of pyroclastic flow is one of the focuses of debate. . Peroni said that the pyroclastic cloud is an oxygen-free environment, so heat is generated without flame. The instantaneous heat shock of "KDSP" and "KDSP" may be a more friendly cause of death than gas and ash suffocation. According to the study of 1990, even the survivors who encountered the mildest pyroclastic flow described the extreme heat, blistering and peeling, and the feeling of being suffocated or suffocated by volcanic ash. Some people who took refuge indoors saw other victims wandering for more than an hour before their lungs were injured.
Original articles on life sciences.