1816 'Year Without a Summer' and Tambora eruption context. 1816 is known as the "Year Without a Summer" caused by a series of volcanic eruptions The event caused widespread crop failure, malnutrition, famine, and pestilence in the Northern Hemisphere Called the "last great subsistence crisis of western civilization"

1816 earned the nickname "Year Without a Summer" thanks to devastating volcanic eruptions that triggered crop failure, malnutrition, famine, and pestilence across the Northern Hemisphere. Some scholars call it the last great subsistence crisis of Western civilization. The 1815 Tambora eruption ranks as the 26th most severe in the last 11,600 years, meaning 25 worse eruptions occurred in just the past 11,000 years, a reminder these catastrophic events are more frequent than once assumed. 🌋

Key Facts

  • 1816 is known as the "Year Without a Summer" caused by a series of volcanic eruptions
  • The event caused widespread crop failure, malnutrition, famine, and pestilence in the Northern Hemisphere
  • Called the "last great subsistence crisis of western civilization"
  • The event also affected China and the Southern Hemisphere
  • The Tambora eruption of 1815 was the 26th most severe volcanic eruption of the last 11,600 years
  • 25 more severe volcanic eruptions occurred within the last 11,000 years, indicating these events are far more numerous than previously imagined