The eruption of Mount Vesuvius 2,000 years ago turned a victim’s brain tissue into glass. Scientists say they have figured out how this unusual phenomenon occurred.

Researchers found organic glass in the skull of a volcano victim, indicating the extreme and unique environment triggered by Vesuvius's eruption in 79 CE.

It was a surprising discovery when scientists examining the remains of a man who died in bed in the ancient city of Herculaneum after Italy's Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD found dark fragments resembling obsidian inside his skull.