Kamchatkan and Northern Kuriles Volcanic Activity
KVERT INFORMATION RELEASE  48-07
Thursday, October 11, 2007, 21:50 UTC (Friday, October 12, 10:50  KDT)

SUMMARY OF LEVEL OF CONCERN COLOR  CODES:

KAMCHATKA:
SHEVELUCH and KARYMSKY: ORANGE
BEZYMIANNY :YELLOW
KLYUCHEVSKOY, TOLBACHIK  PLOSKY, KIZIMEN, AVACHINSKY, KORYAKSKY, MUTNOVSKY and GORELY:  GREEN

NORTHERN KURILES:
CHIKURACHKI: ORANGE
EBEKO and ALAID: GREEN

BEZYMIANNY  VOLCANO: 55°58'N, 160°36'E; Elevation 2,895 m
CURRENT LEVEL OF  CONCERN COLOR CODE IS YELLOW

Activity of the volcano continues to increase. Ash explosions up to 10 km (or 32,800 ft.) ASL are possible during next weeks. The activity of the volcano could affect international and low-flying  aircraft.

Growth of the lava dome continues. Seismic activity was at background levels all week. Probably a hot avalanche at the lava dome was registered on October 10. According to visual data, a weak fumarolic activity was noted  at the dome on October 06-07, and strong fumarolic activity on October 10 and 11, clouds obscured the volcano on the other days. According to satellite data, a bright thermal anomaly over the lava dome was noted on October 04, 06, 08 and 11.

SHEVELUCH  VOLCANO: 56°38'N, 161°19'E; Elevation 3,283 m, the dome elevation  ~2,500 m.
CURRENT LEVEL OF CONCERN COLOR CODE IS ORANGE

Growth of the lava dome continues. Ash explosions up to 10 km (32,800 ft.) ASL could occur at any time. The activity of the volcano could affect international and low-flying aircraft.

Seismic activity was above background levels. Many shallow volcanic earthquakes and an intermittent volcanic tremor were registered all week. According to seismic data, ash plumes up to 6.5 km (21,300 ft) ASL occurred at the volcano on October 04-06 and 09-11. There were small hot avalanches all week. According to video data, gas-steam plumes (sometimes containing ash) raising up to 4.5 km (14,800 ft) ASL were noted on October 04, 06-07 and 11. There was a weak fumarolic activity on October 08. Clouds obscured the volcano on the other days. According to satellite data, a big thermal anomaly was noted all week. Ash plumes extended > 250 km (155 mi) mainly to the eastern directions from the volcano on October 04-08.

KARYMSKY VOLCANO: 54°03'N, 159°27'E; Elevation  1,486 m.
CURRENT LEVEL OF CONCERN COLOR CODE IS ORANGE

The eruption of the volcano continues. Ash explosions up to 6 km (or 19,700 ft.) ASL are possible at any time. The activity of the  volcano could affect low-flying aircraft in the vicinity of the volcano.

Seismic activity was above background levels all week, many shallow volcanic earthquakes and a spasmodic volcanic tremor were registered at the volcano all days. According to seismic data, possibly ash explosions rose up to 5.2 km (17,100 ft) ASL all week. According to satellite data, a big thermal anomaly at the volcano was noted on October 04-08 and 10-11. Clouds obscured the volcano on the other days. Ash plumes extended > 350 km (> 217 mi) mainly to the eastern directions from the volcano on October 04-08 and 10-11.

CHIKURACHKI VOLCANO 50°19'N, 155°28'E; Elevation 1,816 m
CURRENT LEVEL OF CONCERN COLOR CODE: ORANGE

The eruption of the volcano continues. Ash explosions up to 6 km (or 19,700 ft.) ASL are possible. The activity of the volcano could affect low-flying aircraft.

According to satellite data, gas-steam plume containing small amount of ash extended > 50 km (> 31 mi) from the volcano to the north-east on October 07 and 10, clouds obscured the volcano on the other days.

Chikurachki volcano is not monitored with seismic instruments. KVERT has satellite monitoring and receives occasional visual observations of this volcano.


IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS, PLEASE  CONTACT:

Olga Girina, KVERT, IVS FED RAS
E-mail: girina@kscnet.ru
Tel. (41522) 58627

Svetlana Toloknova, KVERT, KB GS RAS
E-mail: ssl@emsd.iks.ru
Tel.  (41522) 59523

Tom Murray, Scientist-in-Charge, AVO
E-mail: tlmurray@usgs.gov
Tel. 907-786-7497

The Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response  Team (KVERT) is a non-commercial cooperative program of the Alaska Volcano  Observatory (AVO, USA), the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (IVS)  FED RAS and the Kamchatkan Branch of Geophysical Survey (KB GS) RAS (Russia). KVERT staff is available in the office from 8:30 AM till 6:00 PM  (KST or KDT) and by phone during the evenings. KVERT uses daily satellite  imagery, information from remote scientific observation stations,  real-time seismic data for 10 volcanoes, and other information to monitor  activity at Kamchatkan and Northern Kuriles Volcanoes.

The official  web-page of KVERT (the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology FED RAS): http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/kvert/index.html
Archive of daily information KB GS RAS: ftp://emsd.iks.ru/pub/DATA/RTS/Volcanoes
KVERT Information Releases at the web-page of  AVO (Alaska Volcano Observatory): http://www.avo.alaska.edu/activity/avoreport.php?view=kaminfo