Maurice Krafft

On 3 June 1991 at 4pm local time, Mount Unzen erupted, forming pyroclastic flows that rushed down its slopes, killing 43 people including the Kraffts, as well as their fellow volcanologist Harry Glicken, who had accompanied them to observe the eruption. On 5 June 1991, the bodies of the Kraffts and Glicken were recovered. Katia and Maurice were found near their rental car, lying side by side under a layer of pyroclastic ash; Glicken's body was located nearby. The bodies were burned beyond recognition and were identified using personal items, including Maurice's watch and camera. The bodies' position suggested that Glicken had attempted to flee from the flow, while the Kraffts had remained where they were. Material they filmed of the approaching flow was destroyed by the volcanic heat. The remains of the Kraffts were cremated during a Catholic funeral service, and were placed at the Anyo-ji Shrine in Shimabara, which was dedicated to the victims of the 1792 Unzen earthquake and tsunami. Their ashes were subsequently interred at Katia's family plot in France. After his death, Maurice was quoted in the Associated Press as stating that he wanted to die pursuing his work "at the edge of a volcano."

Maurice Krafft Guide des volcans d’Europe: généralités, France, Islande, Italie, Grèce, Allemagne..., Neuchâtel: Delachaux et Niestlé, 1974, 412 pages. Questions à un volcanologue: Maurice Krafft répond, Paris: Hachette-Jeunesse, 1981, 231 pages. Les Volcans et leurs secrets, Paris: Nathan, 1984, 63 pages. Le Monde merveilleux des volcans, Paris: Hachette-Jeunesse, 1981, 58 pages. Les Feux de la Terre: Histoire de volcans, collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 113), série Sciences et techniques. Paris: Gallimard, 1991 (new edition in 2003), 208 pages. Volcanoes: Fire from the Earth, "Abrams Discoveries" series, New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1993. Volcanoes: Fire from the Earth, 'New Horizons' series, London: Thames & Hudson, 1993. Maurice and Katia Krafft À l’assaut des volcans, Islande, Indonésie, Paris: Presses de la Cité, 1975, 112 pages. Preface by Eugène Ionesco, Les Volcans, Paris: Draeger-Vilo, 1975, 174 pages. La Fournaise, volcan actif de l’île de la Réunion, Saint-Denis: Éditions Roland Benard, 1977, 121 pages. Volcans, le réveil de la Terre, Paris: Hachette-Réalités, 1979, 158 pages. Dans l’antre du Diable: volcans d’Afrique, Canaries et Réunion, Paris: Presses de la Cité, 1981, 124 pages. Volcans et tremblements de terre, Paris: Les Deux Coqs d’Or, 1982, 78 pages. Volcans et dérives des continents, Paris: Hachette, 1984, 157 pages. Les plus beaux volcans, d’Alaska en Antarctique et Hawaï, Paris: Solar, 1985, 88 pages. Volcans et éruptions, Paris: Hachette-Jeunesse, 1985, 90 pp. Les Volcans du monde, Vevey-Lausanne: Éditions Mondo, 1986, 152 pages. Objectif volcans, Paris: Nathan Image, 1986, 154 pp. Führer zu den Virunga Vulkanen, Stuttgart: F. Enke, 1990, 187 pages. Maurice Krafft and Roland Benard Au cœur de la Fournaise, Orléans: Éditions Nourault-Bénard, 1986, 220 pages. Maurice Krafft, Katia Krafft and François-Dominique de Larouzière Guide des volcans d'Europe et des Canaries, Neuchâtel: Delachaux et Niestlé, 1991, 455 pages.

A volcanic crater, M. and K. Krafft Crater, on the Piton de la Fournaise volcano in Réunion, France, is named after the couple. The crater is located at 21°13′23″S 55°43′2″E. Lava erupted from this crater in March 1998. The Krafft Medal honours the Kraffts' memory and is awarded every four years by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior to someone who has made significant contributions to volcanology through service to communities affected by volcanic activity. The Centre for the Study of Active Volcanoes at the University of Hawai'i at Hilo established a fund remembering the Kraffts, the Maurice and Katia Krafft Memorial Fund. Donations are directed to educate people in countries of high volcanic risk about the hazards active volcanoes pose. Filmmaker Werner Herzog made the documentary The Fire Within: A Requiem for Katia and Maurice Krafft in 2022.