Russian volcano smoke plume seen from space

NASA's Terra satellite captured this image of a smoke plume
coming from the Bezymianny volcano on the the Kamchatka
Peninsula in Russia.  See a larger image below. (NASA)

The Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia is a relatively active area for volcanic activity, like much of the rest of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The Bezymianny volcano in the east-central part of the peninsula is the smaller of three neighboring volcanoes.

Bezymianny was thought to be extinct until it erupted from 1955 to 1956. Prior to that, it had experienced a period of 1,000 of dormancy. The 1956 eruption was comparable in size to the Mount Saint Helens eruption in 1980 and resulted in a horseshoe shaped crater that has since been filled by other, smaller eruptions and pyroclastic flows.

On Wednesday, November 25, 2009, NASA’s Terrra spacecraft captured an image of a smoke plume emanating from the volcano. Using the craft’s Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), the plume is clearly seen as is its shadow.

• Map:  Bezymianny volcano, Kamchatka, Russia
• More info: Global Volcanism Program report on the Bezymianny volcano

Shadow Cast by Bezymianny Volcano 

Despite no reports of activity, Bezymianny Volcano exhibited a modest plume on November 25, 2009. The plume appears translucent white in this false-color satellite image acquired by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) aboard NASA’s Terra spacecraft. The white color and absence of visible ash on the snow-covered peak suggest that the plume is mostly steam. A striking shadow cast by the plume darkens the southern flank of neighboring Kamen Volcano. Bezymianny and Kamen are two of many volcanoes located on Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula.

NASA Earth Observatory image by Robert Simmon, based on data from the NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team. Caption by Robert Simmon.