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• Credit

  Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

The Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia is home to numerous volcanoes. This true-color MODIS image from May 12, 2002, shows the detection of three separate "hot spots" (red dots) in the region. The northernmost one comes from the Sheveluch volcano, which began erupting in late April, and has remained restless since then. Reports from the Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team, available from the Alaska Volcano Observatory indicate that the volcano's status is "Code Yellow," which means a large eruption may occur without warning in the next few weeks. To the south of Sheveluch, the Karymsky volcano also had a detectable thermal signature, and reports indicate it also has been restless since late April, and is classified as "Code Yellow." The southernmost thermal anomaly is not a volcano, but rather fires that are being used to prepare the land for agriculture.

Thanks to Dave Schneider, U.S. Geological Survey, Alaska Volcano Observatory, for his help in image interpretation.

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• Database Updated: February 25 2008