Tambora, a volcano on the island of Sumbawa and at that time one of the tallest mountains in Indonesia, erupted violently, propelling a Plinian eruption column up over 18 miles high. Spectacular though it was, the April 5 event was just the warm-up for the main show five days later, when Tambora uncorked the largest eruption observed in historical times, vastly larger than the Pinatubo, Katmai/Novarupta or Krakatau eruptions. Mount St. Helens in 1980 was a mere hiccup in comparison. The top of the mountain was replaced by a caldera four miles across, and the injection of dust and sulphur dioxide into the atmosphere led to the “year without a summer.”
That should be “200 years” I think.
Um, yes.