The earth shook and then spewed as the Krasheninnikov volcano erupted on August 3 for the first time in six centuries! This is huge news for the Kamchatka Peninsula in eastern Russia.
What You Need to Know
- This was the first recorded eruption of the Krasheninnikov Volcano since the 15th century.
- The ash cloud from the eruption reached approximately 4 miles high but didn’t pose any danger to any towns nearby.
- This eruption may have a connection to the powerful earthquake that struck just a week earlier and caused tsunami warnings worldwide.
The volcanic activity started early in the morning, around 6 a.m. local time, with staff from the nearby Kronotsky Nature Reserve spotting the first signs of gas and ash shooting out
According to reports from the Reuters and CNN, Olga Girina, who heads the Kamchatka Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT), confirmed this was a historically significant eruption for the volcano.
The ash plume from this volcano was measured at nearly 3.7 miles high, which the KVERT later confirmed went as high as 4 miles. Rest assured, there are no dense populations nearby, making it less jeopardizing for residents.
Vsevolod Yakovlev, the reserve’s acting director, called the incident “exciting and fascinating,” as this area is home to a cluster of eight active volcanoes—the Krasheninnikov being one of them.
Interestingly, this eruption could be tied to an 8.8 magnitude earthquake that rocked the region just days before, triggering tsunami alarms across various locations, including California and far-flung beaches like Hawaii.
To put things into perspective, this earthquake was among the strongest ever recorded, which may explain the volcanic stir. After that quake, several other earthquakes followed, registering sizable magnitudes of at least 6.0.
The volcano stands majestically at a height of over 1.1 miles, but gathering clouds of ash after this latest incident show it’s still a powerful force of nature.
