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Report on Karymsky (Russia) — April 2006


Karymsky

Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 31, no. 4 (April 2006)
Managing Editor: Richard Wunderman.

Karymsky (Russia) During April 2006, emerging ash plumes remained visible for up to 145 km

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2006. Report on Karymsky (Russia) (Wunderman, R., ed.). Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, 31:4. Smithsonian Institution. https://doi.org/10.5479/si.GVP.BGVN200604-300130



Karymsky

Russia

54.049°N, 159.443°E; summit elev. 1513 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


Karymsky was last reported on in BGVN 30:11. After frequent explosions from December 2004 to June 2005 (BGVN 30:06) a brief decrease in seismic and volcanic activity took place but this ended in late June when ash and gas plumes rose to 3 km above the crater. Seismicity remained above background levels throughout August-December 2005. During this period, ash and gas plumes and thermal anomalies were observed at the volcano.

Seismic activity indicated that ash explosions from the summit crater of Karymsky continued during 14-20 January 2006. Ash plumes extending 6-9 km S from the volcano were observed on 12 January and a thermal anomaly over the dome was observed during 13-15 January. According to seismic data, two possible ash plumes rose to 3.0-3.4 km altitude on 14-15 January.

According to reports from pilots of local airlines, ash emissions from Karymsky rose to 4-5 km altitude during 30-31 January. The ash plumes extended 13-29 km to the SW and SE, respectively. A thermal anomaly was visible at the lava dome during 27 January to 3 February, except when the volcano was obscured by clouds on 28 January. KVERT warned that activity from the volcano could affect nearby low-flying aircraft.

Strombolian activity continued through April 2006. During 10 February to 10 March, a large thermal anomaly was visible at the crater and numerous ash plumes were visible on satellite imagery extending as far as 140 km. On 9 March, a pilot reported an ash plume at a height of ~ 3 km altitude.

During 17-24 March, several ash plumes were visible on satellite imagery at a height of ~ 4 km altitude and extending SE and E. A thermal anomaly was seen at the volcano during periods of visibility. About 40-450 small earthquakes occurred daily.

During 7-14 April satellite imagery showed ash plumes extending ~ 40-145 km E and SE of the volcano, and a large thermal anomaly at the crater. Karymsky remained at Concern Color Code Orange from January to April 2006.

Geological Summary. Karymsky, the most active volcano of Kamchatka's eastern volcanic zone, is a symmetrical stratovolcano constructed within a 5-km-wide caldera that formed during the early Holocene. The caldera cuts the south side of the Pleistocene Dvor volcano and is located outside the north margin of the large mid-Pleistocene Polovinka caldera, which contains the smaller Akademia Nauk and Odnoboky calderas. Most seismicity preceding Karymsky eruptions originated beneath Akademia Nauk caldera, located immediately south. The caldera enclosing Karymsky formed about 7600-7700 radiocarbon years ago; construction of the stratovolcano began about 2000 years later. The latest eruptive period began about 500 years ago, following a 2300-year quiescence. Much of the cone is mantled by lava flows less than 200 years old. Historical eruptions have been vulcanian or vulcanian-strombolian with moderate explosive activity and occasional lava flows from the summit crater.

Information Contacts: Olga Girina, Kamchatka Volcanic Eruptions Response Team (KVERT), a cooperative program of the Institute of Volcanic Geology and Geochemistry, Far East Division, Russian Academy of Sciences, Piip Ave. 9, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, 683006, Russia, the Kamchatka Experimental and Methodical Seismological Department (KEMSD), GS RAS (Russia), and the Alaska Volcano Observatory (USA); Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO), a cooperative program of the U.S. Geological Survey, 4200 University Drive, Anchorage, AK 99508-4667, USA (URL: http://www.avo.alaska.edu/), the Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska, PO Box 757320, Fairbanks, AK 99775-7320, USA, and the Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, 794 University Ave., Suite 200, Fairbanks, AK 99709, USA; Tokyo Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) (URL: https://ds.data.jma.go.jp/svd/vaac/data/).