KVERT reported that the eruption from vents on Klyuchevskoy’s lower NW flank continued during 26 February-5 March. A large, bright thermal anomaly over the vents was identified daily in satellite images. IVS FEB RAS volcanologists visited the field site on 2 March during good weather conditions. They estimated that the cinder cone was 54 m high and 101 m wide at the base. Lava effused from the cone and traveled downslope, melting ice and snow that formed muddy streams. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale).

Geological Summary. Klyuchevskoy (also spelled Kliuchevskoi) is Kamchatka's highest and most active volcano. Since its origin about 6000 years ago, the beautifully symmetrical, 4835-m-high basaltic stratovolcano has produced frequent moderate-volume explosive and effusive eruptions without major periods of inactivity. It rises above a saddle NE of sharp-peaked Kamen volcano and lies SE of the broad Ushkovsky massif. More than 100 flank eruptions have occurred during the past roughly 3000 years, with most lateral craters and cones occurring along radial fissures between the unconfined NE-to-SE flanks of the conical volcano between 500 m and 3600 m elevation. The morphology of the 700-m-wide summit crater has been frequently modified by historical eruptions, which have been recorded since the late-17th century. Historical eruptions have originated primarily from the summit crater, but have also included numerous major explosive and effusive eruptions from flank craters.

Sources: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT), Kamchatka Volcanological Station