The first US land bubble and lessons from the Mount Tambora eruption

ON APR 10, 1815, a volcano on the Indonesian island of Sumbawa erupted – leading eventually to the rise and collapse of the United States’ first land price bubble.

In the largest volcanic eruption in recorded history, Mount Tambora claimed at least 70,000 lives. But the eruption’s effect on the climate was far more deadly and disruptive.

The volcano sent an enormous cloud of sulphur dioxide into the upper atmosphere. This repelled sunlight and temporarily cooled the planet by an estimated 0.5 degree Celsius.