Report on Karymsky (Russia) — October 2018
Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 43, no. 10 (October 2018)
Managing Editor: Edward Venzke.
Research and preparation by Paul Berger.
Karymsky (Russia) Thermal anomalies and ash explosions during August-September 2018
Please cite this report as:
Global Volcanism Program, 2018. Report on Karymsky (Russia) (Venzke, E., ed.). Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, 43:10. Smithsonian Institution. https://doi.org/10.5479/si.GVP.BGVN201810-300130
Karymsky
Russia
54.049°N, 159.443°E; summit elev. 1513 m
All times are local (unless otherwise noted)
The most recent eruptive period at Karymsky, on the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia, began on 28 April 2018, with thermal anomalies, gas-and-steam emissions, and ash plumes observed through July 2018. The current report discusses activity through September 2018 (table 11). This report was compiled using information from the Kamchatka Volcanic Eruptions Response Team (KVERT).
KVERT reported ongoing thermal anomalies and intermittent ash plumes over Karymsky during August and September 2018 (table 11). Ash plumes drifted 50 km SE on 7 August, and 40 km S on 25 August. Stronger activity during 10-11 September consisted of continuous dense ash emissions along with explosions that sent plumes 5-6 km high which drifted 860 km NE. Incandescence photographed the next night was attributed to fumarolic activity (figure 41). Ash plumes were identified drifting 365 km E on 22-23 September. The last thermal anomaly was identified in satellite images on 28 September, and an ash plume was last visible on 30 September.
Date | Observations |
01-07 Aug 2018 | Thermal anomalies; ash plume drifted 50 km SE on 7 Aug. |
08-14 Aug 2018 | Thermal anomalies. |
25-31 Aug 2018 | Thermal anomalies; ash plume drifted 40 km S on 25 Aug. |
01-07 Sep 2018 | Thermal anomalies. |
08-15 Sep 2018 | Continuous ash emissions on 10 Sep. Explosions during 10-11 Sep with plumes rising 5-6 km that drifted 860 km NE. |
16-23 Sep 2018 | Thermal anomalies; ash plumes drifted 365 km E on 22-23 Sep. |
24-30 Sep 2018 | Thermal anomalies; ash plume on 30 Sep. |
Thermal anomalies, based on MODIS satellite instruments analyzed using the MODVOLC algorithm, were last observed on 31 July 2018. The MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) system detected one hotspot in early August (moderate power), and two hotspots in late September (low power).
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: Kamchatka Volcanic Eruptions Response Team (KVERT), Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 9 Piip Blvd., Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, 683006, Russia (URL: http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/kvert/); Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences (IVS FEB RAS), 9 Piip Blvd., Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky 683006, Russia (URL: http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/eng/); Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (HIGP) - MODVOLC Thermal Alerts System, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), Univ. of Hawai'i, 2525 Correa Road, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA (URL: http://hotspot.higp.hawaii.edu/); MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground).