pietro scerrato · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Active stratovolcano in the Gulf of Naples, Italy
Mount Vesuvius is a volcano in the Somma-Vesuvius complex (Italy). Its summit stands 1,281 m above sea level. Its prominence — how far it rises above the highest saddle linking it to a taller summit — is 1,232 m.
From the lowest point within 5 km (109 m), it rises 1,172 m. The steepest side is the south-east face: 24° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 55° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.
The nearest town is Massa di Somma, 5 km away at 166 m: 1,115 m below the summit.
Scores
Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.
Hiking & mountaineering
6.4/10
Difficulty to the top
Hike
Most path sections around the top are T2 on the SAC hiking scale.
Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.
Ski score
—
No ski runs within 12 km in OpenStreetMap.
Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.
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Snow
At the summit, occasional snow from December to February. Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Summit1,281 moccasional snow from December to February | Snow some of the time | Snow some of the time | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | Snow some of the time |
Halfway up724 mno snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow |
Massa di Somma166 mno snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow | No snow |
Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.
Summit weather
Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.
On an average July afternoon the summit reaches about 25 °C; on January nights it falls to about -3 °C. Afternoons at the top are above freezing in every month of the average year. In July the 0 °C line climbs to about 5,060 m, above the summit: the top thaws on an average afternoon. Across the region, August is the driest month (24 mm) and November the wettest (116 mm).
| Month | Summit high °C | Summit low °C | Massa di Somma high °C | 0 °C line (m) | Rain & snow (mm) | Wet days | Sun h/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4 | -3 | 11 | 1,900 | 88 | 11 | 3.5 |
| February | 4 | -3 | 12 | 1,970 | 68 | 10 | 4.3 |
| March | 7 | -1 | 14 | 2,400 | 70 | 10 | 5.5 |
| April | 11 | 2 | 18 | 2,990 | 56 | 10 | 7.0 |
| May | 16 | 6 | 23 | 3,680 | 47 | 8 | 8.5 |
| June | 21 | 11 | 28 | 4,530 | 33 | 5 | 10.4 |
| July | 25 | 13 | 32 | 5,060 | 25 | 5 | 11.3 |
| August | 25 | 14 | 32 | 5,060 | 24 | 5 | 10.3 |
| September | 19 | 10 | 26 | 4,250 | 68 | 10 | 7.4 |
| October | 15 | 6 | 22 | 3,570 | 76 | 11 | 5.8 |
| November | 10 | 2 | 17 | 2,760 | 116 | 13 | 3.9 |
| December | 5 | -2 | 12 | 2,080 | 84 | 12 | 3.5 |
Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 264 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.
Relief
Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. Heights drawn 2× taller than lengths, so the shape can be seen.
Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.
Around the mountain
Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.
N
5 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Sentiero 4: Attraverso la Riserva Tirone, Sentiero 6: La Strada Matrone, Sentiero 1: La Valle dell'Inferno, L and 9 more
Panorama and 37 more
Parcheggio Torre Amarea H24, Eco Camping Vesuvio, Branditos, Parcheggio camper Ercolano and 6 more
Il Fauno, Hotel Forum, M.E.C., Agriturismo Bel Vesuvio Inn and 107 more
272 path sections within 5 km, by SAC hiking scale (T1 easy walk … T6 difficult alpine).
OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Photos
Recent years
Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991–2020 average | 4 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 16 | 21 | 25 | 25 | 19 | 15 | 10 | 5 |
| 2020 | +1.0 | +2.2 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +1.1 | −1.7 | +0.6 | +1.1 | +2.5 | −1.5 | +1.0 | +0.5 |
| 2021 | −0.4 | +1.8 | −0.7 | −1.7 | −0.5 | +2.2 | +1.3 | +1.3 | +2.4 | −0.9 | +0.8 | +0.5 |
| 2022 | +0.3 | +1.8 | −0.6 | −0.1 | +3.1 | +4.5 | +3.0 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +2.0 | +0.7 | +3.0 |
| 2023 | +1.1 | +0.7 | +0.9 | −1.2 | −0.7 | −0.4 | +2.3 | +0.5 | +3.6 | +3.6 | +1.1 | +1.8 |
| 2024 | +1.7 | +3.1 | +1.6 | +2.1 | +1.2 | +2.0 | +3.1 | +3.2 | +0.5 | +1.7 | +1.4 | +1.3 |
| 2025 | +2.0 | +2.5 | +1.9 | +1.5 | +1.1 | +4.8 | +1.2 | +0.9 | +1.4 | −2.2 | −0.7 | +1.5 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
| Names, elevation, prominence | Wikidata (Q524) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Relief, 3D view, profiles | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Climate | NASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0 |
| Around the mountain | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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