Eruptions in the Northern Group of Volcanoes, in Kamchatka, during the Early 21st Century

Abstract

The early 21st century saw increased eruption activity of major volcanoes in the Northern Group of Kamchatka, namely, Sheveluch, Klyuchevskoy, Bezymianny, and the Tolbachik Fissure Zone. The growth of an extrusive dome on Sheveluch andesitic volcano has occurred, with the dome reaching a height of 600 m after 38 years of nearly uninterrupted eruption activity. An 8-year period of relative quiet was followed by ten summit eruptions and two lateral vent openings on the Klyuchevskoy basaltic volcano. Explosive-effusive eruptions were observed nearly every year on the Bezymianny andesitic volcano. A 36-year quiet period gave way to a new eruption in the Tolbachik regional fissure zone.

Thermal remote sensing reveals communication between volcanoes of the Klyuchevskoy Volcanic Group

“…1 b). After nine years of rest, in 2003, the volcano began a new activity phase characterized by nine summit eruptions until December 2019 41 . Seismic, geodetic, and petrographic data 18 , 21 , 22 , 25 , 40 suggest that Klyuchevskoy’s eruptions are fed through a sub-vertical, pipe-like conduit extending to a depth of 30–50 km below the volcano, where the primary magma reservoir is located.…”

“…Previous works 46 – 50 outlined how this cyclic activity was accompanied by precursory thermal radiation preceding the explosive events by few weeks to days. Until 2017, more than 55 distinct episodes of dome-growth filled most of the 1956 collapse amphitheater 41 , 44 gradually developing a stratocone with an average growth rate 27 of ~ 0.30 m 3 s −1 (blue line in Fig. 1 c).…”

“…*Date of explosion from Ozerov et al 41 . **Event #15 not detected by MODIS but reported in Ozerov et al 41 .…”

“… Volumes, TADR and MOR are calculated as bulk values (see “Methods”). *Date of explosion from Ozerov et al 41 . **Event #15 not detected by MODIS but reported in Ozerov et al 41 .…”

Constructive and Destructive Processes During the 2018–2019 Eruption Episode at Shiveluch Volcano, Kamchatka, Studied From Satellite and Aerial Data

“…As a consequence, the construction of the Shiveluch dome was repeatedly interrupted by destructive events (Shevchenko and Svirid, 2014): the two largest events occurred in 2005 and 2010, which left collapse scars on the SSW and SSE flanks of its edifice, respectively, and the pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) from these collapses extended distances of ∼19 and ∼16 km, respectively Ramsey et al, 2012). The eruption columns from the explosive events reached a height of 15 km (Ozerov et al, 2020). To the best of our knowledge, the Shiveluch lava dome has not been visited for direct study since 2008 because it is hazardous to access and exhibits unpredictable activity.…”