Ash plume on Kamchatka Peninsula, eastern Russia
Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC
The Klyuchevskaya and Sheveluch volcanoes both show signs of very recent or ongoing eruptions in these Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS images, acquired on March 17, 2005, by NASA’s Terra satellite. The volcanoes are among the most active on Russia’s highly geologically active Kamchatka Peninsula, and both have been erupting for much of 2005.
The volcanoes form circular peaks in these images, making them easy to identify in the snow-covered landscape. A dusting of brown ash covers the southern slopes of Sheveluch, the northernmost of the two volcanoes. While Sheveluch does not appear to be erupting in the image, the ash indicates that the volcano has erupted recently. To its south, a plume of white steam and ash rises from Klyuchevskaya and drifts northeast on the wind. The plume is clearly visible in the false color image, where snow is orange and the warmer plume is white.