The Karymsky Volcano on Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula showed considerable activity between March 10 and 17, 2006. The volcano emitted ash several times, and satellite imagery showed debris, most likely ash, draped along the sides of the mountain. When the skies were clear over the volcano, satellites also observed a thermal anomaly at the summit. In late March 2006, the United States Geological Survey placed Karymsky at code orange, the second-highest level of concern, meaning that the volcano was not erupting or posing a major hazard, but was clearly active and merited careful monitoring.
When the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua satellite observed the volcano on March 19, 2006, the thermal sensors did not detect the hotspot that had been observed earlier, but the satellite did detect a plume of light ash blowing eastward over the Bering Sea. Shown here, the plume appears pale gray-beige over the snowy land surface, and pale gray over the ocean water.
NASA image created by Jesse Allen, Earth Observatory, using data provided courtesy of the MODIS Rapid Response team.
