Shiveluch Volcano continued its intermittent activity on October 3, 2009. A thin plume of ash and/or steam streamed southeast from the volcano in this natural-color satellite image taken by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Terra spacecraft. MODIS also detected a hotspot on the peak, implying continued growth of the lava dome in Shiveluch’s summit caldera.
White snow covers Shiveluch, Klyuchevskaya (Klyuchevskoy) to the southwest, and other nearby mountains. At lower elevations, the vegetation exhibits the brown and orange tones of fall. The southern slopes of Shiveluch are covered by gray deposits of rock and ash, the result of frequent small collapses on the flanks of the lava dome.
Shiveluch (or Sheveluch) is a stratovolcano composed of alternating layers of solidified lava, ash, and rocks from earlier eruptions. Reaching an altitude of 3,283 meters (10,771 feet) above sea level, it is one of Kamchatka’s largest and most active volcanoes. The active lava dome began growing in 1980.
References & Resources
- Smithsonian/USGS (2009, September 23–29.) Global Volcanism Program weekly volcanic activity report. Accessed October 6, 2009.
NASA image courtesy MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center. The Rapid Response Team provides daily images of this region. Caption by Robert Simmon.
